University  of  California  •  Berkeley 
CLASS  OF  1897 


AN 


APPEAL 


N    FAVOR    OF    THAT    CLASS 


OF 


AMERICANS  CALLED  AFRICANS. 


BY  MRS.  CHILD, 

AUTHOR  OF   THE   MOTHER'S   BOOK,    THE    GIRL'S   OWN   BOOK, 
THE   FRUGAL   HOUSEWIFE,  ETC. 


"  We  have  offended,  Oh !  my  countrymen ! 
We  have  offended  very  grievously, 
And  been  most  tyrannous.     From  east  to  west 
A  groan  of  accusation  pierces  Heaven ! 
The  wretched  plead  against  us  ;  multitudes, 
Countless  and  vehement,  the  sons  of  God, 
Our  brethren ! 

COLERIDGE. 


NEW-YORK : 
PUBLISHED  BY  JOHN  S.   TAYLOR. 

1836. 


PREFACE. 


READER,  I  beseech  you  not  to  throw  down  this  vol- 
ume as  soon  as  you  have  glanced  at  the  title.  Read 
it,  if  your  prejudices  will  allow,  for  the  very  truth's 
sake  : — If  I  have  the  most  trifling  claims  upon  your 
good  will,  for  an  hour's  amusement  to  yourself,  or 
benefit  to  your  children,  read  it  for  my  sake  : — Read 
it,  if  it  be  merely  to  find  fresh  occasion  to  sneer  at  the 
vulgarity  of  the  cause  : — Read  it$  from  sheer  curiosity 
to  see  what  a  woman  (who  had  much  better  attend 
to  her  household  concerns)  will  say  upon  such  a  sub- 
ject : — Read  it,  on  any  terms,  and  my  purpose  will 
be  gained. 

The  subject  I  have  chosen  admits  of  no  encomiums 
on  my  country  ;  but  as  I  generally  make  it  an  object 
to  supply  what  is  most  needed,  this  circumstance  is 
unimportant ;  the  market  is  so  glutted  with  flattery, 
that  a  little  truth  may  be  acceptable,  were  it  only  for 
its  rarity. 

I  am  fully  aware  of  the  unpopularity  of  the  task  I 
have  undertaken;  but  though  I  expect  ridicule  and 
censure,  it  is  not  in  my  nature  to  fear  them. 

A  few  years  hence,  the  opinion  of  the  world  will  be 
a  matter  in  which  I  have  not  even  the  most  transient 
interest  ;  but  this  book  will  be  abroad  on  its  mission 
of  humanity,  long  after  the  hand  that  wrote  it  is  min- 
gling with  the  dust. 

Should  it  be  the  means  of  advancing,  even  one  sin- 
gle hour,  the  inevitable  progress  of  truth  and  justice, 
I  would  not  exchange  the  consciousness  for  all  Roth- 
child's  wealth,  or  Sir  Walter's  fame. 


INDEX. 


109 


Adams,  John, 
Adams,  J.  Quincy,  .  .  .109 
Africa  benighted  by  Slavery,  .  9 
African  Repository,  Extracts 

from,        .        .        .      123,  133, 137 
African    Individuals    of   distinc- 
tion,        ....  157  to  167 
Amalgamation.      .        .        .     132,  200 
Ancient,  and  Modern  Slavery  com- 
pared,       38 

Anti-Slavery  Society,   .        .        .142 

Appleton,  Mr 78 

Baptism  supposed  to  confer  free- 
dom,         58 

Bible  opposed  to  slavery,  .  .  32 
Blood-hounds,  ....  27 
Brown,  Moses,  ....  98 

Brodnax,  Mr 79 

Capt.  Rile)', 73 

CharJes  5th,  refused  lo  sanction 

the  slave-trade,  ...  8 
Child  follows  the  condition  of  its 

mother,  .  .  .  .  .40 
Christianity  abolished  slavery,  .  58 
Clay,  Henry,  .  .  .  .  77,136 
Clothing  of  Slaves,  ...  44 
Cede  Noir,  .  .  .  .45, 49, 54 
Colonization,  ....  123 
Cruelties  to  Slaves,  .  17,  24,  26,  28 
Devonshire,  Duchess  of,  .  .  215 
Democracy  of  the  North,  .  .  112 
District  of  Columbia,  .  .  .216 

Duelling 113 

Dymond,  Jonathan,  .  .  .  147 
Eastern  and  Western  Virginia,  .  119 
Effect  of  Slavery  on  tho  Masters,  22 

Egyptians, 149 

Elizabeth  of   England  tolerated 

the  trade,        .        .        ...      jh 
Emancipation  safe,       ...      87 
English  formerly  sold  to  Irian,     .      58 
Entailed  upon  us  by  England,      .      75 

Ethiopians, 149 

Everett,  Alexander  H.  .  .  176 
Evidence  of  colored  persons  not 

admitted,         .        .        .         45,48 

Faulkner,  Mr 79 

Female  slaves  unprotected,  .  23 
Fierceness  and  pride  induced  by 

Slavery,  .        .        .        .       ".    113 

Food  of  Slaves 44 

French  planter's  ideas  of  religion 

for  Slaves,      ....      58 

Free  Labor, 76 

Garrison,  Mr 209 

Gentoo  Code,        ...        .52 


Gholson,  Mr.        '•".  .  .        .  -  102 

Grecian  Slavery,  .        .     47,  53,  54,  56 
Happiness  of  Slaves,    .        .        .    140 

Hayne,  Mr 103 

Hayti,     .  86,121 

Hebrews,        .        .        .  48,52,55 

Helots, 47 

Humanity  of  masters,  how  far  a 

protection,  ....  72 
Indian  treatment  of  Slaves,  .  46 
Inequality  of  laws  for  offences,  .  60 
Insurrections,  ....  194 
Iritellect  of  Africans,  .  .  151,170 
Internal  slave-trade,  ...  33 
Interest  to  treat  slaves  well, 
Jefferson,  Thomas, 
Kenrick,  John,  .... 
Kidnapping,  ...  3 

Labor  compulsory  and  uncompen- 

sated, 41 

Lafayette 97 

Laws  regulating  labor,  .  43,  44 
Laws  obstruct  emancipation,  .  54 
Laws  to  perpetuate  ignorance,  59, 67, 70 
Laws  against  Free  Colored  Peo- 
ple,   

Louis  13th, 

Marriages,  laws  concerning, 
Martineau,  Harriet, 
Masters  have  absolute  power  to 
punish,    ..... 
Miller,  Gov.  of  S.  Carolina, 
Missouri  Question,        .        .        . 
Moral  Character  of  Africans, 
Moss,  Mary  and  Helen, 
New-England  kept  in  check  by 
jealousy  of  the  Slave  States, 
North  and  South, 
Ohio  and  Kentucky, 
Offences  punished  in  Slaves, 
Park,  Mungo,         .... 
Pauperism,  comparative  in  West 
Indies,     ..... 

Petitions, 

Pinckney,  Charles, 
Political  power  of  Slave  States,  . 
Portuguese,  .        .        .      7, 48, 54 

Prejudice  against  color  almost  un- 
known in  other  countries,  135,  208 
Prejudice  cherished  by  Coloniza- 

"tion, 133 

Prejudice,  instances  of,        .  198  to  209 

Quakers, 213 

Religious  privileges  of  Slaves,     .      57 

Roane,  Mr 139 

Roman  Slaves,     .        .  47,  M,  56 


30 

22 

215 

i,  65 


63 

8 

196 

83 

49 
103 
120 
177 

24 

114 
31 

86 
61 
177 

90 
216 
109 
111 


VI 


INDEX. 


Runaways,    .        .        .  62,71 

Sectional  dislike,          .                .  121 

Slave  Trade,  beginning  of,           .  7 

Slave  Ship,  description  of,           .  12 

Slave  Trade,  cruelties  of,            .  17 
Slave  Trade  defended  in  House 

of  Commons,  ....  19 
Slave  Trade  sanctioned  by  Con- 
stitution of  the  United  States 

for  twenty  years,  ...  36 

Slave  cut  in  pieces,      ...  26 
Slave  Codes,  different  degrees  of 

mildness,         ....  39 

Slavery,  hereditary  and  perpetual,  42 
Slaves  cannot  own  property,        46,  71 

Slaves  considered  as  chattels,     .  45 

Slaves  in  Africa,  48 

Slav  as  never  allowed  to  resist,    .  52 
Slaves  in  U    S.  cannot  redeem 

themselves,    ....  53 


Slaves  unprotected  in  domestic 

relations,         ....  54 

Slave  Representation,           .        .  105 

Slavery  veiled  in  the  Constitution,  106 
Son,  who  murdered  his  father  to 

obtain  freedom,      ...  23 
Southerners  do  not  desire  the  abo- 
lition of  Slavery,    .        .        .100 

Southerner,  conversation  with,  .  139 
Spanish  Slaves,    .        .        7,48,54,56 

St.  Domingo,         ....  86 

Sutcliff's  Travels,         ...  81 

Toussaint  L'Ouverture,        •        .  166 

Turkey, 56 

Union, 119 

Washington's  Slaves,  ...  96 

Washington  had  doubts,        .        .  107 

Wirt,  William,       ....  102 

Wright,  Gov.  of  Maryland,  .        .  106 

Zhinga, 154 


AN   APPEAL,   &o. 


CHAPTER   I. 

BRIEF  HISTORY  OF  NEGRO   SLAVERY.— ITS  INEVITABLE  EFFECT 
UPON  ALL   CONCERNED  IN  IT. 


The  lot  is  wretched,  the  condition  sad, 

Whether  a  pining  discontent  survive, 

And  thirst  for  change  ;  or  habit  hath  subdued 

The  soul  depressed;  dejected — even  to  love 

Of  her  dull  tasks  and  close  captivity.  WOKDSWOBTH 

My  ear  is  pained, 

My  soul  is  sick  with  every  day's  report 
Of  wrong  and  outrage,  with  which  this  earth  is  filled. 
There  is  no  flesh  in  man's  obdurate  heart, 
It  does  not  feel  for  man.  COWPEB. 


WHILE  the  Portuguese  were  exploring  Africa,  in  1442, 
Prince  Henry  ordered  Anthony  Gonsalez  to  carry  back 
certain  Moorish  prisoners,  whom  he  had  seized  two  years 
before  near  Cape  Bajador :  this  order  was  obeyed,  and 
Gonsalez  received  from  the  Moors,  in  exchange  for  the 
captives,  ten  negroes,  and  a  quantity  of  gold  dust.  Un- 
luckily, this  wicked  speculation  proved  profitable,  and  other 
Portuguese  were  induced  to  embark  in  it. 

In  1492,  the  West  India  islands  were  discovered  by  Co- 
lumbus. The  Spaniards,  dazzled  with  the  acquisition  of  a 
new  world  and  eager  to  come  into  possession  of  their 
wealth,  compelled  the  natives  of  Hispaniola  to  dig  in  the 
mines.  The  native  Indians  died  rapidly,  in  consequence  of 
hard  work  and  cruel  treatment ;  and  thus  a  new  market 
was  opened  for  the  negro  slaves  captured  by  the  Portuguese. 
They  were  accordingly  introduced  as  early  as  1503.  Those 
who  bought  and  those  who  sold  were  alike  prepared  to 
trample  on  the  rights  of  their  fellow-beings,  by  that  most 
demoralizing  of  all  influences,  the  accursed  iove  of  gold. 

Cardinal  Ximenes,  while  he  administered  the  government, 
before  the  accession  of  Charles  the  Fifth,  was  petitioned  to 


8  BRIEF   HISTORY 

allow  a  regular  commerce  in  African  negroes.  But  he  re- 
jected the  proposal  with  promptitude  and  firmness,  alike 
honorable  to  his  head  and  heart.  This  earliest  friend  of  the 
Africans,  living  in  a  comparatively  unenlightened  age,  has 
peculiar  claims  upon  our  gratitude  and  reverence.  In  1517,x 
Charles  the  Fifth  granted  a  patent  for  an  annual  supply  of 
four  thousand  negroes  to  the  Spanish  islands.  He  proba- 
bly soon  became  aware  of  the  horrible  and  ever-increasing 
evils,  attendant  upon  this  traffic  ;  for  twenty-five  years  after 
he  emancipated  every  negro  in  his  dominions.  But  when 
he  resigned  his  crown  and  retired  to  a  monastery,  the  colo- 
nists resumed  their  shameless  tyranny. 

Captain  Hawkins,  afterward  Sir  John  Hawkins,  was  the 
first  Englishman,  who  disgraced  himself  and  his  country 
by  this  abominable  trade.  Assisted  by  some  rich  people  in 
London,  he  fitted  out  three  ships,  and  sailed  to  the  African 
coast,  where  he  burned  and  plundered  the  towns,  and  car- 
ried off  three  hundred  of  the  defenceless  inhabitants  to  His- 
paniola. 

Elizabeth  afterwards  authorized  a  similar  adventure  with 
one  of  her  own  vessels.  "  She  expressed  her  concern  lest 
any  of  the  Africans  should  be  carried  off  without  their  free 
consent;  declaring  that  such  a  thing  would  be  detestable, 
and  call  down  the  vengeance  of  Heaven  upon  the  under- 
takers." For  this  reason,  it  has  been  supposed  that  the 
queen  was  deceived — that  she  imagined  the  negroes  were 
transported  to  the  Spanish  colonies  as  voluntary  laborers. 
But  history  gives  us  slight  reasons  to  judge  Elizabeth  so 
favorably.  It  was  her  system  always  to  preserve  an  ap- 
pearance of  justice  and  virtue.  She  was  a  shrewd,  far- 
sighted  politician ;  and  had  in  perfection  the  clear  head  and 
cold  heart  calculated  to  form  that  character.  Whatever 
she  might  believe  of  the  trade  at  its  beginning,  she  was  too 
deeply  read  in  human  nature,  not  to  foresee  the  inevitable 
consequence  of  placing  power  in  the  hands  of  avarice. 

A  Roman  priest  persuaded  Louis  the  Thirteenth  to  sanc- 
tion slavery  for  the  sake  of  converting  the  negroes  to  Chris- 
tianity ;  and  thus  this  bloody  iniquity,  disguised  with  gown, 
hood,  and  rosary,  entered  the  fair  dominions  of  France. 
To  be  violently  wrested  from  his  home,  and  condemned  to 
toil  without  hope,  by  Christians,  to  whom  he  had  done  no 
wrong,  was,  methinks,  a  very  odd  beginning  to  the  poor 
negro's  course  of  religious  instruction ! 


OF    NEGRO    SLAVERY.  9 

When  this  evil  had  once  begun,  it,  of  course,  gathered 
strength  rapidly ;  for  all  the  bad  passions  of  human  nature 
were  eagerly  enlisted  in  its  cause.  The  British  formed 
settlements  in  North  America,  and  in  the  West  Indies ;  and 
these  were  stocked  with  slaves.  From  1680  to  1786,  two 
million,  one  hundred  and  thirty  thousand  negroes  were  im- 
ported into  the  British  colonies  ! 

In  almost  all  great  evils  there  is  some  redeeming  feature 
— some  good  results,  even  where  it  is  not  intended :  pride 
and  vanity,  utterly  selfish  and  wrong  in  themselves,  often 
throw  money  into  the  hands  of  the  poor,  and  thus  tend  to 
excite  industry  and  igenuity,  while  they  produce  comfort. 
But  slavery  is  all  evil — within  and  without — root  and  branch, 
— bud,  blossom  and  fruit ! 

In  order  to  show  how  dark  it  is  in  every  aspect — how  in- 
variably injurious  both  to  nations  and  individuals, — I  will 
select  a  few  facts  from  the  mass  of  evidence  now  before  me. 

In  the  first  place,  its  effects  upon  Africa  have  been  most 
diastrous.  All  along  the  coast,  intercouse  with  Europeans 
has  deprived  the  inhabitants  of  their  primitive  simplicity, 
without  substituting  in  its  place  the  order,  refinement,  and 
correctness  of  principle,  attendant  upon  true  civilization. 
The  soil  of  Africa  is  rich  in  native  productions,  and  honr 
orable  commerce  might  have  been  a  blessing  to  her,  to  Eu- 
rope, and  to  America;  but  instead  of  that,  a  trade  has  been 
substituted,  which  operates  like  a  withering  curse,  upon  all 
concerned  in  it. 

There  are  green  and  sheltered  valleys  in  Africa, — broad 
and  beautiful  rivers, — and  vegetation  in  its  loveliest  and  most 
magnificent  forms. — But  no  comfortable  houses,  no  thriving 
farms,  no  cultivated  gardens  ; — for  it  is  not  safe  to  possess 
permanent  property,  where  each  little  state  is  surrounded  by 
warlike  neighbors,  continually  sending  out  their  armed  bands 
in  search  of  slaves.  The  white  man  offers  his  most  tempt- 
ing articles  of  merchandise  to  the  negro,  as  a  price  for  the 
flesh  and  blood  of  his  enemy;  and  if  we,  with  all  our 
boasted  knowledge  and  religion,  are  seduced  by  money  to 
do  such  grievous  wrong  to  those  who  have  never  offended 
us,  what  can  we  expect  of  men  just  emerging  from  the  lim- 
ited wants  of  savage  life,  too  uncivilized  to  have  formed  any 
habits  of  steady  industry,  yet  earnestly  coveting  the  pro- 
ductions they  know  not  how  to  earn  !  The  inevitable  conse- 
quence is,  that  war  is  made  throughout  that,  unhappy  conti- 


10  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY. 

nent,  not  only  upon  the  slightest  pretences,  but  often  without 
any  pretext  at  all.  Villages  are  set  on  fire,  and  those  who 
fly  from  the  flames,  rush  upon  the  spears  of  the  en^my 
Private  kidnapping  is  likewise  carried  on  to  a  great  extent , 
for  he  who  can  catch  a  neighbor's  child  is  sure  to  find  a 
ready  purchaser  ;  and  it  sometimes  happens  that  the  captor 
and  his  living  merchandise  are  both  seized  by  the  white 
slave-trader.  Houses  are  broken  open  in  the  night,  and  de- 
fenceless women  and  children  carried  away  into  captivity. 
If  boys,  in  the  unsuspecting  innocence  of  youth,  come  near 
the  white  man's  ships,  to  sell  vegetables  or  fruit,  they  are 
ruthlessly  seized  and  carried  to  slavery  in  a  distant  land. 
Even  the  laws  are  perverted  to  this  shameful  purpose.  If 
a  chief  wants  European  commodities,  he  accuses  a  parent 
of  witchcraft ;  the  victim  is  tried  by  the  ordeal  of  poisoned 
water  ;*  and  if  he  sicken  at  the  draught,  the  king  claims  a 
right  to  punish  him  by  selling  his  whole  family.  In  African 
legislation,  almost  all  crimes  are  punished  with  slavery  ;  an4 
thanks  to  the  white  man's  rapacity,  there  is  always  a  very 
powerful  motive  for  finding  the  culprit  guilty.  He  must  h<? 
a  very  good  king  indeed,  that  judges  his  subjects  impartially, 
when  he  is  sure  of  making  money  by  doing  otherwise ! 

The  king  of  Dahomy,  and  other  despotic  princes,  do  nst 
scruple  to  seize  their  own  people  and  sell  them,  without  prov 
ocation,  whenever  they  happen  to  want   anything,  which 
slave-ships  can  furnish.     If  a  chief  has  conscience  enough 
to  object  to  such  proceedings,  he  is  excited  by  presents  of 
gunpowder  and  brandy.     One  of  these  men,  who  could  no* 
resist  the  persuasions  of  the  slave-traders  while  he  was  in 
toxicated,  was  conscience-stricken  when   he  recovered  hir* 
senses,  and  bitterly  reproached  his  Christian  seducers.     One 
negro  king,  debarred  by  his  religion  from  the  use  of  spirit 
uous  liquors,  and  therefore  less  dangerously  tempted  thai* 
others,  abolished  the  slave-trade  throughout  his  dominions'. 
and  exerted  himself  to  encourage  honest  industry ;  but  his 
people  must  have  been  as  sheep  among  wolves. 

Relentless  bigotry  brings  its  aid  to  darken  the  horrors  of 
the  scene.  The  Mohammedans  deem  it  right  to  subject  the 
heaihen  tribes  to  perpetual  bondage.  The  Moors  and  Arab? 
think  Alia  and  the  prophet  have  given  them  an  undisputed 

*  Judicial  trials  by  the  ordeal  of  personal  combat,  in  which  the  van 
quishe*'  were  always  pronounced  guilty,  occurred  as  late  as  thesixteentl 
century,  Doth  in  France  and  England. 


ON 'ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  11 

» 

right  to  the  poor  Caffre,  his  wife,  his  children,  and  his  goods. 
But  mark  how  the  slave-traac  deepens  even  the  fearful  gloom 
of  bigotry  !  These  Mohammedans  are  by  no  means  zealous 
to  enlighten  their  Pagan  neighbors — they  do  not  wish  them 
to  come  to  a  knowledge  of  what  they  consider  the  true  re- 
ligion— lest  they  should  forfeit  the  only  ground,  on  which 
they  can  even  pretend  to  the  right  of  driving  them  by  thou- 
sands to  the  markets  of  Kano  and  Tripoli. 

This  is  precisely  like  our  own  conduct.  We  say  the  ne- 
groes are  so  ignorant  that  they  must  be  slaves ;  and  we  insist 
upon  keeping  them  ignorant,  lest  we  spoil  them  for  slaves. 
The  same  spirit  that  dictates  this  logic  to  the  Arab,  teaches 
it  to  the  European  and  the  American : — Call  it  what  you 
please — it  is  certainly  neither  of  heaven  nor  of  earth. 

When  the  slave-ships  are  lying  on  the  coast  of  Africa, 
canoes  well  armed  are  sent  into  the  inland  country,  and 
after  a  few  weeks  they  return  with  hundreds  of  negroes,  tied 
fast  with  ropes.  Sometimes  the  white  men  lurk  among 
the  bushes,  and  seize  the  wretched  beings  who  incautiously 
venture  from  their  homes  ;  sometimes  they  paint  their  skins 
as  black  as  their  hearts,  and  by  this  deception  suddenly  sur- 
prise the  unsuspecting  natives ;  at  other  times  the  victims 
are  decoyed  on  board  the  vessel,  under  some  kind  pretence 
or  other,  and  then  lashed  to  the  mast,  or  chained  in  the  hold. 
Is  it  not  very  natural  for  the  Africans  to  say  "  devilish  white  ?" 

All  along  the  shores  of  this  devoted  country,  terror  and 
distrust  prevail.  The  natives  never  venture  out  without 
arms,  when  a  vessel  is  in  sight,  and  skulk  through  their 
own  fields,  as  if  watched  by  a  panther.  All  their  worst 
passions  are  called  into  full  exercise,  and  all  their  kindlier 
feelings  smothered.  Treachery,  fraud  and  violence  deso- 
late the  country,  rend  asunder  the  dearest  relations,  and 
pollute  the  very  fountains  of  justice.  The  history  of  the 
negro,  whether  national  or  domestic,  is  written  in  blood. 
Had  half  the  skill  and  strength  employed  in  the  slave-trade 
been  engaged  in  honorable  commerce,  the  native  princes 
would  long  ago  have  directed  their  energies  towards  clear- 
ing the  country,  destroying  wild  beasts,  and  introducing  the 
arts  and  refinements  of  civilized  life.  Under  such  influ- 
ences, Africa  might  become  an  earthly  paradise  ; — the  white 
man's  avarice  has  made  it  a  den  of  wolves. 

Having  thus  glanced  at  the  miserable  effects  of  this  sys- 
tem on  the  condition  of  Africa,  we  will  now  follow  the  poor 


12  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY. 

slave  through  his  wretched  wanderings,  in  order  to  give 
some  idea  of  his  physical  suffering,  his  mental  and  moral 
degradation. 

Husbands  are  torn  from  their  wives,  children  from  their 
parents,  while  the  air  is  filled  with  the  shrieks  and  lamen- 
tations of  the  bereaved.  Sometimes  they  are  brought  from 
a  remote  country ;  obliged  to  wander  over  mountains  and 
through  deserts  ;  chained  together  in  herds  ;  driven  by  the 
whip  ;  scorched  by  a  tropical  sun  ;  compelled  to  carry  heavy 
bales  of  merchandise ;  suffering  with  hunger  and  thirst ; 
worn  down  with  fatigue ;  and  often  leaving  their  bones  to 
whiten  in  the  desert.  A  large  troop  of  slaves,  taken  by  the 
Sultan  of  Fezzan,  died  in  the  desert  for  want  of  food.  In 
some  places,  travellers  meet  with  fifty  or  sixty  skeletons  in 
a  day,  of  which  the  largest  proportion  were  no  doubt  slaves, 
on  their  way  to  European  markets.  Sometimes  the  poor 
creatures  refuse  to  go  a  step  further,  and  even  the  lacerating 
whip  cannot  goad  them  on  ;  in  such  cases,  they  become  the 
prey  of  wild  beasts,  more  merciful  than  white  men. 

Those  who  arrive  at  the  seacoast,  are  in  a  state  of  despe- 
ration and  despair.  Their  purchasers  are  so  well  aware 
of  this,  and  so  fearful  of  the  consequences,  that  they  set 
sail  in  the  night,  lest  the  negroes  should  know  when  they 
depart  from  their  native  shores. 

And  here  the  scene  becomes  almost  two  harrowing  to 
dwell  upon.  But  we  must  not  allow  our  nerves  to  be  more 
tender  than  our  consciences.  The  poor  wretches  are  stowed 
by  hundreds,  like  bales  of  goods,  between  the  low  decks, 
where  fillh  and  putrid  air  produce  disease,  madness  and  sui- 
cide. Unless  they  die  in  great  numbers,  the  slave-captain 
does  not  even  concern  himself  enough  to  fret ;  his  live  stock 
cost  nothing,  and  he  is  sure  of  such  a  high  price  for  what 
remains  at  the  end  of  the  voyage,  that  he  can  afford  to  lose 
a  good  many. 

The  following  account  is  given  by  Dr.  Walsh,  who  ac- 
companied Viscount  Strangford,  as  chaplain,  on  his  embassy 
to  Brazil.  The  vessel  in  which  he  sailed  chased  a  slave-ship ; 
for  to  the  honor  of  England  be  it  said,  she  has  asked  and 
obtained  permission  from  other  governments,  to  treat  as  pi- 
rates  such  of  their  subjects  as  are  discovered  carrying  on 
this  guilty  trade  north  of  the  equator.  Doctor  Walsh  was 
an  eyewitness  of  the  scene  he  describes ;  and  the  evidence 
given,  at  various  times,  before  the  British  House  of  Com- 


ON   ALL   CONCERNED   IN   IT.  13 

mons,  proves  that  the  frightful  picture  is  by  no  means  exag- 
gerated. 

"  The  vessel  had  taken  in,  on  the  coast  of  Africa,  three 
hundred  and  thirty-six  males,  and  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
six  females,  making  in  all  five  hundred  and  sixty-two;  she 
had  been  out  seventeen  days,  during  which  she  had  thrown, 
overboard  fifty-five.  They  were  all  inclosed  under  grated 
hatchways,  between  decks.  The  space  was  so  low,  and  they 
were  stowed  so  close  together,  that  there  was  no  possibility 
of  lying  down,  or  changing  their  position,  night  or  day. 
The  greater  part  of  them  Were  shut  out  from  light  and 
air;  and  this  when  the  thermometer,  exposed  to  the  open 
sky,  was  standing,  in  the  shade  on  our  deck,  at  eighty -nine 
degrees. 

"  The  space  between  decks  was  divided  into  two  compart- 
ments, three  feet  three  inches  high.  Two  hundred  and 
twenty-six  women  and  girls  were  thrust  into  one  space  two 
hundred  and  eighty-eight  feet  square ;  and  three  hundred 
and  thirty-six  men  and  boys  were  crammed  into  another 
space  eight  hundred  feet  square ;  giving  the  whole  an  aver, 
age  of  twenty-three  inches ;  and  to  each  of  the  women  not 
more  than  thirteen  inches  ;  though  several  of  them  were  in 
a  state  of  health,  which  peculiarly  demanded  pity. — As  they 
were  shipped  on  account  of  different  individuals,  they  were 
branded  like  sheep,  with  the  owner's  marks  of  different 
forms ;  which,  as  the  mate  informed  me  with  perfect  indif- 
ference, had  been  burnt  in  with  red-hot  iron.  Over  the 
hatchway  stood  a  ferocious  looking  fellow,  the  slave-driver 
of  the  ship,  with  a  scourge  of  many-twisted  thongs  in  his 
hand  ;  whenever  he  heard  the  slightest  noise  from  below,  he 
shook  it  over  them,  and  seemed  eager  to  exercise  it. 

"  As  soon  as  the  poor  creatures  saw  us  looking  down  at 
them,  their  melancholy  visages  brightened  up.  They  per- 
ceived something  of  sympathy  and  kindness  in  our  looks, 
to  which  they  had  not  been  accustomed  ;  and  feeling  in- 
stinctively that  we  were  friends,  they  immediately  began  to 
shout  and  clap  their  hands.  The  women  were  particularly 
excited.  They  all  held  up  their  arms,  and  when  we  bent 
down  and  shook  hands  with  them,  they  could  not  contain 
their  delight;  they  endeavored  to  scramble  upon  their  knees-, 
stretching  up  to  kiss  our  hands,  and  we  understood  they 
knew  we  had  come  to  liberate  them.  Some,  however,  hung 
down  their  heads  in  apparently  hopeless  dejection :  some 

2 


14  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

were  greatly  emaciated  ;  and  some,  particularly  children, 
seemed  dying.  The  heat  of  these  horrid  places  was  so 
great,  and  the  odor  so  offensive,  that  it  was  quite  impossible 
to  enter  them,  even  had  there  been  room. 

The  officers  insisted  that  the  poor,  suffering  creatures, 
should  be  admitted  on  deck  to  get  air  and  water.  This 
was  opposed  by  the  mate  of  the  slaver,  who  (from  a  feeling 
that  they  deserved  it,)  declared  they  should  be  all  mur- 
dered. The  officers,  however,  persisted,  and  the  poor  beings 
were  all  turned  out  together.  It  is  impossible  to  conceive 
the  effect  of  this  eruption — five  hundred  and  seventeen  fel- 
low-creatures, of  all  ages  and  sexes,  some  children,  some 
adults,  some  old  men  and  women,  all  entirely  destitute  of 
clothing,  scrambling  out  together  to  taste  the  luxury  of  a  little 
fresh  air  and  water.  They  came  swarming  up,  like  bees 
from  a  hive,  till  the  whole  deck  was  crowded  to  suffocation 
from  stem  to  stern ;  so  that  it  was  impossible  to  imagine 
where  they  could  all  have  come  from,  or  how  they  could 
have  been  stowed  away.  On  looking  into  the  places  where 
they  had  been  crammed,  there  were  found  some  children  next 
the  sides  of  the  ship,  in  the  places  most  remote  from  light 
and  air ;  they  were  lying  nearly  in  a  torpid  state,  after  the 
rest  had  turned  out.  The  little  creatures  seemed  indifferent 
as  to  life  or  death  ;  and  when  they  were  carried  on  deck, 
many  of  them  could  not  stand.  After  enjoying  for  a  short 
time  the  unusual  luxury  of  air,  some  water  was  brought ; 
it  was  then  that  the  extent  of  their  sufferings  was  exposed 
in  a  fearful  manner.  They  all  rushed  like  maniacs  towards 
it.  No  entreaties,  or  threats,  or  blows,  could  restrain  them  ; 
they  shrieked,  and  struggled,  and  fought  with  one  another, 
for  a  drop  of  this  precious  liquid,  as  if  they  grew  rabid  at 
the  sight  of  it.  There  is  nothing  from  which  slaves  in  the 
mid-passage  suffer  so  much  as  want  of  water.  It  is  some- 
times usual  to  take  out  casks  filled  with  sea-water  as  bal- 
last, and  when  the  slaves  are  received  on  board,  to  start  the 
casks,  and  re-fill  them  with  fresh.  On  one  occasion,  a  ship 
from  Bahia  neglected  to  change  the  contents  of  their  casks, 
and  on  the  mid-passage  found  to  their  horror,  that  they  were 
filled  with  nothing  but  salt  water.  All  the  slaves  on  board 
perished!  We  could  judge  of  the  extent  of  their  sufferings 
from  the  afflicting  sight  we  now  saw.  When  the  poor  crea- 
tures were  ordered  down  again,  several  of  them  came,  and 
pressed  their  heads  against  our  kness,  with  looks  of  the 


ON   ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  15 

greatest  anguish,  with  the  prospect  of  returning  to  the  hor- 
rid place  of  suffering  below." 

Alas !  the  slave-captain  proved  by  his  papers  that  he  con- 
fined his  traffic  strictly  to  the  south  of  the  Line,  where  it  was 
yet  lawful ;  perhaps  his  papers  were  forged  ;  but  the  Eng- 
lish officers  were  afraid  to  violate  an  article  of  the  treaty, 
which  their  government  had  made  with  Brazil.  Thus  does 
cunning  wickedness  defeat  benevolence  and  justice  in  this 
world !  Dr.  Walsh  continues :  "  With  infinite  regret,  there- 
fore, we  were  obliged  to  restore  his  papers  to  the  captain, 
and  permit  him  to  proceed,  after  nine  hours'  detention  and 
close  investigation.  It  was  dark  when  we  separated,  and  the 
last  parting  sounds  we  heard  from  the  unhallowed  ship,  were 
the  cries  and  shrieks  of  the  slaves,  suffering  under  some 
bodily  infliction." 

I  suppose  the  English  officers  acted  politically  right ;  but 
not  for  the  world's  wealth,  would  I  have  acted  politically 
right,  under  such  circumstances !  * 

Arrived  at  the  place  of  destination,  the  condition  of  the 
slave  is  scarcely  less  deplorable.  They  are  advertised  with 
cattle  ;  chained  in  droves,  and  driven  to  market  with  a  whip  ; 
and  sold  at  auction,  with  the  beasts  of  the  field.  They  are 
treated  like  brutes,  and  all  the  influences  around  them  con-- 
spire  to  make  them  brutes.  f 

"  Some  are  employed  as  domestic  slaves,  when  and  how 
the  owner  pleases ;  by  day  or  by  night,  on  Sunday  or  other 
days,  in  any  measure  or  degree,  with  any  remuneration  or 
with  none,  with  what  kind  or  quantity  of  food  the  owner  of 
the  human  beast  may  choose.  Male  or  female,  young  or 
old,  weak  or  strong,  may  be  punished  with  or  without  rea- 
son, as  caprice  or  passion  may  prompt.  When  the  drudge 
does  not  suit,  he  may  be  sold  for  some  inferior  purpose,  like 
a  horse  that  has  seen  his  best  days,  till  like  a  worn-out  beast 
he  dies,  unpitied  and  forgotten !  Kept  in  ignorance  of  the 
holy  precepts  and  divine  consolations  of  Christianity,  he 
remains  a  Pagan  in  a  Christian  land,  without  even  an  object 

*  Dr.  Walsh's  book  on  Brazil  was  published  in  1831.  He  says; 
"Notwithstanding  the  benevolent  and  persevering  exertions  of  England, 
this  horrid  traffic  in  human  flesh  is  nearly  as  extensively  carried  on  as 
ever,  and  under  circumstances  perhaps  of  a  more  revolting  character. 
The  very  shifts  at  evasion,  the  necessity  for  concealment,  and  the  despe- 
rate hazard,  cause  inconvenience  and  sufferings  to  the  poor  creatures  in 
a  very  aggravated  degree." 


1C  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

of  idolatrous  worship — <  having  no  hope,  and  without  God 
in  the  world.'  " 

From  the  moment  the  slave  is  kidnapped,  to  the  last 
hour  he  draws  his  miserable  breath,  the  white  man's  influ- 
ence directly  cherishes  ignorance,  fraud,  treachery,  theft, 
licentiousness,  revenge,  hatred  and  murder.  It  cannot  be 
denied  that  human  nature  thus  operated  upon,  must  neces- 
sarily yield,  more  or  less,  to  all  these  evils. — And  thus  do 
we  dare  to  treat  beings,  who,  like  ourselves,  are  heirs  of 
immortality ! 

And  now  let  us  briefly  inquire  into  the  influence  of  sla- 
very on  the  white  man's  character  ;  for  in  this  evil  there 
is  a  mighty  re-action.  "  Such  is  the  constitution  of  things, 
that  we  cannot  inflict  an  injury  without  suffering  from  it 
ourselves:  he  who  blesses  another,  benefits  himself;  but 
he  who  sins  against  his  fellow-creature,  does  his  own  soul 
a  grievous  wrong."  The  effect  produced  upon  slave-cap- 
tains is  absolutely  frightful.  Those  who  wish  to  realize  it 
in  all  its  awful  extent,  may  find  abundant  information  in 
Clarkson's  History  of  Slavery:  the  authenticity  of  the  facts 
there  given  cannot  be  doubted ;  for  setting  aside  the  perfect 
honesty  of  Clarkson's  character,  these  facts  were  principally 
accepted  as  evidence  before  the  British  Parliament,  where 
there  was  a  very  stong  party  of  slave-owners  desirous  to 
prove  them  false. 

Indeed  when  we  reflect  upon  the  subject,  it  cannot  excite 
surprise  that  slave-captains  become  as  hard-hearted  and 
fierce  as  tigers.  The  very  first  step  in  their  business  is  a 
deliberate  invasion  of  the  rights  of  others ;  its  pursuit  com- 
bines every  form  of  violence,  bloodshed,  tyranny  and  an- 
guish ;  they  are  accustomed  to  consider  their  victims  as 
cattle,  or  blocks  of  wood  ;*  and  they  are  invested  with  per. 
fectly  despotic  powers. 

There  is  a  great  waste  of  life  among  white  seamen  em. 
ployed  in  this  traffic,  in  consequnce  of  the  severe  punish- 
ment they  receive,  and  diseases  originating  in  the  unwhole- 

*  I  have  read  letters  from  slave-captains  to  their  employers,  in  which 
they  declare  that  they  sh;pped  such  a  number  of  billets  of  ivood,  or  pieces 
of  ebony,  on  ths  coast  of  Africa. 

Near  the  office  of  the  Richmond  Inquirer  in  Virginia,  an  auction  flag 
was  hoisted  one  day  this  last  winter,  with  the  following  curious  adver- 
tisement :  "  On  Monday  the  1 1th  inst,  will  be  sold  in  front  of  the  High 
Constable's  office,  one  bright  mulatto  woman,  about  twenty-six  years  of 
age  j  also,  some  empty  barrels,  and  sundry  old  candle-boxes. 


ON    ALL   CONCERNED    IN    IT.  37 

some  atmosphere  on  board.  Clarkson,  after  a  long  and 
patient  investigation,  came  to  the  conclusion  that  two  slavo 
voyages  to  Africa,  would  destroy  more  seamen  than  eighty- 
three  to  Newfoundland ;  and  there  is  this  difference  to  be 
observed,  that  the  loss  in  one  trade  is  generally  occasioned 
by  weather  or  accident,  in  the  other  by  cruelty  or  disease. 
The  instances  are  exceedingly  numerous  of  sailors  on  board 
slave-ships,  that  have  died  under  the  lash,  or  in  consequence 
of  it.  Some  of  the  particulars  are  so  painful  that  it  has 
made  me  sicken  to  read  them ;  and  I  therefore  forbear  to 
repeat  them.  Of  the  Alexander's  crew,  in  1785,  no  less 
than  eleven  deserted  at  Bonny,  on  the  African  coast,  because 
life  had  become  insupportable.  They  chose  all  that  could 
be  endured  from  a  most  inhospitable  climate,  and  the  violence 
of  the  natives,  rather  than  remain  in  their  own  ship.  Nine 
others  died  on  the  voyage,  and  the  rest  were  exceedingly 
abused.  This  state  of  things  was  so  universal  that  seamen 
were  notoriously  averse  to  enter  the  hateful  business.  In 
order  to  obtain  them  it  became  necessary  to  resort  to  force 
or  deception.  (Behold  how  many  branches  there  are  to  the 
tree  of  crime !)  Decoyed  to  houses  where  night  after  night 
was  spent  in  dancing,  rioting  and  drunkenness,  the  thought- 
less fellows  gave  themselves  up  to  the  merriment  of  the 
scene,  and  in  a  moment  of  intoxication  the  fatal  bargain  was 
sealed.  Encouraged  to  spend  more  than  they  owned,  a  jail 
or  the  slave-ship  became  the  only  alternatives.  The  supe- 
riority of  wages  was  likewise  a  strong  inducement ;  but  this 
was  a  cheat.  The  wages  of  the  sailors  were  half  paid  in 
the  currency  of  the  country  where  the  vessel  carried  her 
slaves  ;  arid  thus  they  were  actually  lower  than  in  other 
trades,  while  they  were  nominally  higher. 

In  such  an  employment  the  morals  of  the  seamen  of  course 
became  corrupt,  like  their  masters ;  and  every  species  of 
fraud  was  thought  allowable  to  deceive  the  ignorant  Afri- 
cans, by  means  of  false  weights,  false  measures,  adulterated 
commodities,  and  the  like. 

Of  the  cruelties  on  board  slave-ships,  I  will  mention  but 
a  few  instances ;  though  a  large  volume  might  be  filled  with 
such  detestable  anecdotes  perfectly  well  authenticated. 

"  A  child  on  board  a  slave-ship,  of  about  ten  months  old, 
took  sulk  and  would  not  eat ;  the  captain  flogged  it  with  a 
cat-o'-nine-tails ;  swearing  that  he  would  make  it  eat,  or  kill 
it.  From  this,  and  other  ill-treatment,  the  limbs  swelled. 

2* 


18  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

He  then  ordered  some  water  to  be  made  hot  to  abate  the 
swelling.  But  even  his  tender  mercies  were  cruel.  The 
cook,  on  putting  his  hand  into  the  water,  said  it  was  too  hot. 
Upon  this  the  captain  swore  at  him,  and  ordered  the  feet  to 
be  put  in.  This  was  done.  The  nails  and  skin  came  off. 
Oiled  cloths  were  then  put  around  them.  The  child  was  at 
length  tied  to  a  heavy  log.  Two  or  three  days  afterwards, 
the  captain  caught  it  up  again,  and  repeated  that  he  would 
make  it  eat,  or  kill  it.  He  immediately  flogged  it  again,  and 
in  a  quarter  of  an  hour  it  died.  And  after  the  babe  was 
dead,  whom  should  the  barbarian  select  to  throw  it  over- 
board,  but  the  wretched  mother  !  In  vain  she  tried  to  avoid 
the  office.  He  beat  her,  till  he  made  her  take  up  the  child 
and  carry  it  to  the  side  of  the  vessel.  She  then  dropped  it 
into  the  sea,  turning  her  head  the  other  way,  that  she  might 
not  see  it."* 

"  In  1780,  a  slave-trader,  detained  by  contrary  winds  on 
the  American  coast,  and  in  distress,  selected  one  hundred 
and  thirty-two  of  his  sick  slaves,  and  threw  them  into  the 
sea,  tied  together  in  pairs,  that  they  might  not  escape  by 
swimming.  He  hoped  the  Insurance  Company  would  in- 
demnify him  for  his  loss ;  and  in  the  law-suit,  to  which  this 
gave  birth,  he  observed  that  *  negroes  cannot  be  considered 
jn  any  other  light  than  as  beasts  of  burden  ;  and  to  lighten  a 
vessel  it  is  permitted  to  throw  overboard  its  least  valuable 
effects.' 

"  Some  of  the  unhappy  slaves  escaped  from  those  who 
attempted  to  tie  them,  and  jumped  into  the  sea.  One  of 
them  was  saved  by  means  of  a  cord  thrown  by  the  sailors 
of  another  vessel ;  and  the  monster  who  murdered  his  in- 
nocent companions  had  the  audacity  to  claim  him  as  his  prop- 
erty. The  Judges,  either  from  shame,  or  a  sense  of  justice, 
refused  his  demand. "f 

Some  people  speculate  in  what  are  called  refuse  slaves ; 
i.  e.  the  poor  diseased  ones.  Many  of  them  die  in  the  piaz- 
zas of  the  auctioneers ;  and  sometimes,  in  the  agonies  of 
death,  they  are  sold  as  low  as  a  dollar. 

Even  this  is  better  than  to  be  unprotected  on  the  wide 
ocean,  in  the  power  of  such  wild  beasts  as  I  have  described. 
It  may  seem  incredible  to  some  that  human  nature  is  capable 

*  Clarkson'a  History  of  the  Abolition  of  the  Slave  Trade. 
f  The  Abb6  Gr6goire's  Inquiry  into  the  Intellect  and  Morals  of  Ne- 
groes. 


ON    ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  19 

of  so  much  depravity.  But  the  confessions  of  pirates  show 
how  habitual  scenes  of  blood  and  violence  harden  the  heart 
of  man;  and  history  abundantly  proves  that  despotic  power 
produces  a  fearful  species  of  moral  insanity.  The  wanton 
cruelties  of  Nero,  Caligula,  Domitian,  and  many  of  the  offi- 
cers of  the  Inquisition,  seem  like  the  frantic  acts  of  madmen. 

The  public  has,  however,  a  sense  of  justice,  which  can 
never  be  entirely  perverted.  Since  the  time  when  Clark- 
son,  Wilberforce  and  Fox  made  the  horrors  of  the  slave- 
trade  understood,  the  slave-captain,  or  slave-jockey,  is  spon- 
taneously and  almost  universally  regarded  with  dislike  and 
horror.  Even  in  the  slaveholding  states  it  is  deemed  dis- 
reputable to  associate  with  a  professed  slave-trader,  though 
few  perhaps  would  think  it  any  harm  to  bargain  with  him. 
This  public  feeling  makes  itself  felt  so  strongly,  that  men 
engaged  in  what  is  called  the  African  traffic,  kept  it  a  se- 
cret, if  they  could,  even  before  the  laws  made  it  hazardous. 

No  man  of  the  least  principle  could  for  a  moment  think  of 
engaging  in  such  enterprises ;  and  if  he  have  any  feeling, 
it  is  soon  destroyed  by  familiarity  with  scenes  of  guilt  and 
anguish.  The  result  is,  that  the  slave-trade  is  a  monopoly 
in  the  hands  of  the  very  wicked ;  and  this  is  one  reason 
why  it  has  always  been  profitable. 

Yet  even  the  slave-trade  has  had  it  champions — of  course 
among  those  who  had  money  invested  in  it.  Politicians  have 
boldly  said  that  it  was  a  profitable  branch  of  commerce,  and 
ought  not  to  be  discontinued  on  account  of  the  idle  dreams 
of  benevolent  enthusiasts.  They  have  argued  before  the 
House  of  Commons,  that  others  would  enslave  the  negroes, 
if  the  English  gave  it  up — as  if  it  were  allowable  for  one 
man  to  commit  a  crime  because  another  was  likely  to  do  it ! 
They  tell  how  merciful  it  is  to  bring  the  Africans  away  from 
the  despotism  and  wars,  which  desolate  their  own  continent ; 
but  they  do  not  add  that  the  white  man  is  himself  the  cause 
of  those  wars,  nor  do  they  prove  our  right  to  judge  for  an- 
other man  where  he  will  be  the  happiest.  If  the  Turks,  or 
the  Algerines  saw  fit  to  exercise  this  right,  they  might  carry 
away  captive  all  the  occupants  of  our  prisons  and  peniten- 
tiaries. 

Some  of  the  advocates  of  this  traffic  maintained  that  the 
voyage  from  Africa  to  the  slave-market,  called  the  Middle 
Passage,  was  an  exceedingly  comfortable  portion  of  exist- 
ence. One  went  so  far  as  to  declare  it  "  the  happiest  part 


20  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

of  a  negro's  life."  They  aver  that  the  Africans,  on  their 
way  to  slavery,  are  so  merry,  that  they  dance  and  sing. 
But  upon  a  careful  examination  of  witnesses,  it  was  found 
that  their  singing  consisted  of  dirge-like  lamentations  for 
their  native  land.  One  of  the  captains  threatened  to  flog 
a  woman,  because  the  mournfulness  of  her  song  was  too 
painful  to  him.  After  meals  they  jumped  up  in  their  irons 
for  exercise.  This  was  considered  so  necessary  for  their 
health,  that  they  were  whipped,  if  they  refused  to  do  it. 
And  this  was  their  dancing!  "I,"  said  one  of  the  witnesses, 
"was  employed  to  dance  the  men,  while  another  person 
danced  the  women." 

These  pretences,  ridiculous  as  they  appear,  are  worth 
about  as  much  as  any  of  the  arguments  that  can  be  brought 
forward  in  defence  of  any  part  of  the  slave  system. 

The  engraving  on  the  next  page  will  help  to  give  a  vivid 
idea  of  the  Elysium  enjoyed  by  negroes,  during  the  Middle 
Passage.  Fig.  A  represents  the  iron  hand-cuffs,  which 
fasten  the  slaves  together  by  means  of  a  little  bolt  with  a 
padlock. 

B  represents  the  iron  shackles  by  which  the  ancle  of  one 
is  made  fast  to  the  ancle  of  his  next  companion.  Yet  even 
thus  secured,  they  do  often  jump  into  the  sea,  and  wave 
their  hands  in  triumph  at  the  approach  of  death.  E  is  a 
thumb-screw.  The  thumbs  are  put  into  two  rounds  holes 
at  the  top ;  by  turning  a  key  a  bar  rises  from  C  to  D  by 
means  of  a  screw  ;  and  the  pressure  becomes  very  painful. 
By  turning  it  further,  the  blood  is  made  to  start ;  and  by 
taking  away  the  key,  as  at  E,  the  tortured  person  is  left  in 
agony,  without  the  means  of  helping  himself,  or  being  helped 
by  others.  This  is  applied  in  case  of  obstinacy,  at  the  dis- 
cretion of  the  captain.  I,  F,  is  a  speculum  oris.  The  dot- 
ted lines  represent  it  when  shut ;  the  black  lines  when  open. 
It  opens  at  G,  H,  by  a  screw  below  with  a  knob  at  the  end 
of  it.  This  instrument  was  used  by  surgeons  to  wrench  open 
the  mouth  in  case  of  lock-jaw.  It  is  used  in  slave-ships  to 
compel  the  negroes  to  take  food  ;  because  a  loss  to  the  own- 
ers would  follow  their  persevering  attempts  to  die.  K  repre- 
sents the  manner  of  stowing  in  a  slave-ship. 

According  to  Clarkson's  estimate,  about  two  and  a  half  out 
of  a  hundred  of  human  beings  die  annually,  in  the  ordinary 
course  of  nature,  including  infants  and  the  aged  ;  but  in  an 
African  voyage,  where  few  babes  and  no  old  people  are 


ON    ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT. 


21 


22  TUB    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

admitted,  so  that  those  shipped  are  at  the  firmest  period  of  life, 
the  annual  mortality  is  forty-three  in  a  hundred.  In  vessels 
that  sail  from  Bonny,  Benin,  and  the  Calabars,  whence  a 
large  proportion  of  slaves  are  brought,  this  mortality  is  so 
much  increased  by  various  causes,  that  eighty-six  in  a  hun- 
dred die  yearly.  He  adds,  "  It  is  a  destruction,  which  if 
general  but  for  ten  years,  would  depopulate  the  world,  and 
extinguish  the  human  race." 

We  next  come  to  the  influence  of  this  diabolical  system 
on  the  slave-owner ;  and  here  I  shall  be  cautioned  that  I 
am  treading  on  delicate  ground,  because  our  own  country- 
men are  slaveholders.  But  I  am  yet  to  learn  that  wick- 
edness is  any  the  better  for  being  our  own.  Let  the  truth 
be  spoken — and  let  those  abide  its  presence  who  can. 

The  following  is  the  testimony  of  Jefferson,  who  had  good 
opportunities  for  observation,  and  who  certainly  had  no 
New-England  prejudices :  "  There  must,  doubtless,  be  an 
unhappy  influence  on  the  manners  of  the  people,  produced 
by  the  existence  of  slavery  among  us.  The  whole  com. 
merce  between  master  and  slave  is  a  perpetual  exercise  of 
the  most  boisterous  passions ;  the  most  unremitting  despotism 
on  the  one  part,  and  degrading  submission  on  the  other. 
Our  children  see  this  and  learn  to  imitate  it;  for  man  is  an 
imitative  animal.  The  parent  storms ;  the  child  looks  on, 
catches  the  lineaments  of  wrath,  puts  on  the  same  airs  in  a 
circle  of  smaller  slaves,  gives  loose  to  the  worst  of  passions; 
and  thus  nursed,  educated,  and  daily  exercised  in  tyranny, 
cannot  but  be  stamped  by  it  with  odious  peculiarities.  The 
man  must  be  a  prodigy,  who  can  retain  his  morals  and  man- 
ners  undepraved  in  such  circumstances." 

In  a  community  where  all  the  labor  is  done  by  one  class 
there  must  of  course  be  another  class  who  live  in  indolence; 
and  we  all  know  how  much  people  that  have  nothing  to  do 
are  tempted  by  what  the  world  calls  pleasures ;  the  result 
is,  that  slaveholding  states  and  colonies  are  proverbial  for 
dissipation.  Hence,  too,  the  contempt  for  industry,  which 
prevails  in  such  a  state  of  society. — Where  none  work  but 
slaves,  usefulness  becomes  degradation.  The  wife  of  a 
respectable  mechanic,  who  accompanied  her  husband  from 
Massachusetts  to  the  South,  gave  great  offence  to  her  new 
neighbors  by  performing  her  usual  household  avocations; 
they  begged  her  to  desist  from  it,  (offering  the  services  of 
their  own  blacks,)  because  the  sight  of  a  white  person  en. 


ON   ALL   CONCERNED   IN   IT.  23 

gaged  in  any  labor  was  extremely  injurious  to  the  slaves ; 
they  deemed  it  very  important  that  the  negroes  should  be 
taught,  both  by  precept  and  example,  that  they  alone  were 
made  to  work  ! 

Whether  the  undue  importance  attached  to  merely  ex- 
ternal gentility,  and  the  increasing  tendency  to  indolence  and 
extravagance  throughout  this  country,  ought  to  be  attrib- 
uted, in  any  degree,  to  the  same  source,  I  am  unable  to  say ; 
if  any  influence  comes  to  us  from  the  example  and  ridicule  of 
the  slaveholding  states,  it  certainly  must  be  of  this  nature. 

There  is  another  view  of  this  system,  which  I  cannot  un- 
veil so  completely  as  it  ought  to  be.  I  shall  be  called  bold 
for  saying  so  much  ;  but  the  facts  are  so  important,  that  it 
is  a  matter  of  consience  not  to  be  fastidious. 

The  negro  woman  is  unprotected  either  by  law  or  public 
opinion.  She  is  the  property  of  her  master,  and  her 
daughters  are  his  property.  They  are  allowed  to  have  no 
conscientious  scruples,  no  sense  of  shame,  no  regard  for  the 
feelings  of  husband,  or  parent;  they  must  be  entirely  sub- 
servient to  the  will  of  their  owner,  on  pain  of  being  whipped 
as  near  unto  death  as  will  comport  with  his  interest,  or  quite 
to  death,  if  it  suit  his  pleasure. 

Those  who  know  human  nature  would  be  able  to  conjec- 
ture the  unavoidable  result,  even  if  it  were  not  betrayed  by 
the  amount  of  mixed  population.  Think  for  a  moment,  what 
a  degrading  effect  must  be  produced  on  the  morals  of  both 
blacks  and  whites  by  customs  like  these ! 

Considering  we  live  in  the  nineteenth  century,  it  is  indeed 
a  strange  state  of  society  where  the  father  sells  his  child, 
and  the  brother  puts  his  sister  up  at  auction !  Yet  these 
things  are  often  practised  in  our  republic. 
.  Doctor  Walsh,  in  his  account  of  Brazil,  tells  an  anecdote 
of  one  of  these  fathers,  who  love  their  offspring  at  market 
price.  "  For  many  years,"  says  he,  "  this  man  kept  his  son 
in  slavery,  and  maintained  the  right  to  dispose  of  him,  as  he 
would  of  his  mule.  Being  ill,  however,  and  near  to  die,  he 
made  his  will,  left  his  child  his  freedom,  and  apprised  him  of 
it.  Some  time  after  he  recovered,  and  having  a  dispute 
with  the  young  man,  he  threatened  to  sell  him  with  the  rest 
of  his  stock.  The  son,  determined  to  prevent  this,  assas- 
sinated his  father  in  a  wood,  got  possession  of  the  will,  de- 
manded his  freedom,  and  obtained  it.  This  circumstance 
was  perfectly  well  known  in  the  neighborhood,  but  no  pro- 


24  THE  EFFECT  OF  SLAVERY 

cess  was  instituted  against  him.  He  was  not  chargeable,  as 
I  could  hear,  with  any  other  delinquency  than  the  horrible 
one  of  murdering  his  father  to  obtain  his  freedom."  This 
forms  a  fine  picture  of  the  effects  of  slavery  upon  human 
relations  !* 

I  have  more  than  once  heard  people,  who  had  just  re- 
turned from  the  South,  speak  of  seeing  a  number  of  mulat- 
toes  in  attendance  where  th^y  visited,  whose  resemblance  to 
the  head  of  the  family  was  loo  striking  not  to  be  immediately 
observed.  What  sort  of  feeling  must  be  excited  in  the 
minds  of  those  slaves  by  being  constantly  exposed  to  the 
tyranny  or  caprice  of  their  own  brothers  and  sisters,  and  by 
the  knowledge  that  these  near  relations,  will  on  a  division  of 
the  estate,  have  power  to  sell  them  off  with  the  cattle  ? 

But  the  vices  of  white  men  eventually  provide  a  scourge 
for  themselves.  They  increase  the  negro  race,  but  the 
negro  can  never  increase  theirs  ;  and  this  is  one  great  rea- 
son why  the  proportion  of  colored  population  is  always  so 
large  in  slaveholding  countries.  As  the  ratio  increases 
more  and  more  every  year,  the  colored  people  must  event, 
ually  be  the  stronger  party;  and  when  this  result  happens, 
slavery  must  either  be  abolished,  or  government  must  furnish 
troops,  of  whose  wages  the  free  states  must  pay  their  pro- 
portion.  4 

As  a  proof  of  the  effects  of  slavery  on  the  temper,  I  will 
relate  but  very  few  anecdotes. 

The  first  happened  in  the  Bahamas.  It  is  extracted  from 
a  despatch  of  Mr.  Huskisson  to  the  governor  of  those  isU 
ands  :  "  Henry  and  Helen  Moss  have  been  found  guilty  of 
a  misdemeanor,  for  their  cruelty  to  their  slave  Kate  ;  and 
those  facts  of  the  case,  which  seem  beyond  dispute,  appear 
to  be  as  follows  : 

"  Kate  was  a  domestic  slave,  and  is  stated  to  have  been 
guilty  of  theft :  she  is  also  accused  of  disobedience,  in  re. 
fusing  to  mend  her  clothes  and  do  her  work  ;  and  this  was 
the  more  immediate  cause  of  her  punishment.  On  the 
twenty-second  of  July,  eighteen  hundred  and  twenty-six, 
she  was  confined  in  the  stocks,  and  she  was  not  released  till 
the  eighth  of  August  following,  being  a  period  of  seventeen 

*  A  short  tirn3  a^o  a  reverend  and  very  benevolent  gentleman  sug- 
gested as  the  subject  of  a  book,  The  Beauty  of  Human  Re.Mions.-— 
What  a  hitter  jest  it  would  be,  to  send  him  this  volume,  with  the  in- 
formation that  I  had  complied  with  his  request ! 


ON    ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  25 

days.  The  stocks  were  so  constructed  that  she  could  not 
sit  up  or  lie  down  at  pleasure,  and  she  remained  in  them 
night  and  day.  During  this  period  she  was  flogged  repeat- 
edly,  one  of  the  overseers  thinks  about  six  times ;  and  red 
pepper  was  rubbed  upon  her  eyes  to  prevent  her  sleeping. 
Tasks  were  given  her,  which,  in  the  opinion  of  the  same 
overseer,  she  was  incapable  of  performing;  sometimes  be- 
cause  they  were  beyond  her  powers,  at  other  times  because 
she  could  not.  see  to  do  them,  on  account  of  the  pepper  having 
been  rubbed  on  her  eyes ;  and  she  was  flogged  for  failing  to 
accomplish  these  tasks.  A  violent  distemper  had  prevailed  on 
the  plantation  during  the  summer.  It  is  in  evidence,  that  on 
one  of  the  days  of  Kate's  confinement,  she  complained  of  fe- 
ver; and  that  one  of  the  floggings  she  received  was  the  day 
after  she  made  the  complaint.  When  she  was  taken  out  of 
the  stocks,  she  appeared  to  be  cramped,  and  was  then  again 
flogged.  The  very  day  of  her  release,  she  was  sent  to  field 
labor,  (though  heretofore  a  house-servant;)  and  on  the  even- 
ing of  the  third  day  ensuing  was  brought  before  her  owners, 
as  being  ill,  and  refusing  to  work  ;  and  she  then  again  com 
plained  of  having  fever.  They  were  of  opinion  that  she 
had  none  then,  but  gave  directions  to  the  driver,  if  she 
should  be  ill,  to  bring  her  to  them  for  medicines  in  the  morn- 
ing. The  driver  took  her  to  the  negro-house,  and  again 
flogged  her ;  though  at  this  time  apparently  without  orders 
from  her  owners  to  do  so.  In  the  morning  at  seven  o'clock 
she  was  taken  to  work  in  the  field,  where  she  died  at  noon. 

"  The  facts  of  the  case  are  thus  far  incontrovertibly  es- 
tablished ;  and  I  deeply  lament,  that,  heinous  as  the  offences 
are  which  this  narrative  exhibits,  I  can  discover  no  material 
palliation  of  them  amongst  the  other  circumstances  detailed 
in  the  evidence." 

A  bill  of  indictment  for  murder  was  preferred  against  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Moss :  the  grand  jury  threw  it  out.  Upon  two  other 
bills,  for  misdemeanors,  a  verdict  of  guilty  was  returned.  Five 
mouths'  imprisonment,  and  a  fine  of  three  hundred  pounds, 
was  the  only  punishment  for  this  deliberate  and  shocking 
cruelty ! 

In  the  next  chapter,  it  will  be  seen  that  similar  misde- 
meanors are  committed  with  equal  impunity  in  this  country. 

I  do  not  know  how  much  odium  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Moss 
generally  incurred  in  consequence  of  this  transaction  ;  but 
many  of  "  the  most  respectable  people  in  the  island  peti- 


26  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

tioned  for  a  mitigation  of  their  punishment,  visited  them  in 
prison,  did  every  thing  to  identify  themselves  with  them,  and 
on  their  liberation  from  jail,  gave  them  a  public  dinner  as  a 
matter  of  triumph  !"  The  witnesses  in  their  favor  even 
went  so  far  as  to  insist  that  their  character  stood  high  for 
humanity  among  the  neighboring  planters. 

I  believe  there  never  was  a  class  of  people  on  earth  so 
determined  to  uphold  each  other,  at  all  events,  as  slave- 
owners. 

The  following  account  was  originally  written  by  the  Rev. 
William  Dickey,  of  Bloomingsburgh,  to  the  Rev.  John  Ran- 
kin,  of  Ripley,  Ohio.  It  was  published  in  1826,  in  a  little 
volume  of  letters,  on  the  subject  of  slavery,  by  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Rankin,  who  assures  us  that  Mr.  Dickey  was  well 
acquainted  with  the  circumstances  he  describes. 

"  In  the  county  of  Livingston,  Kentucky,  near  the  mouth 
of  Cumberland  river,  lived  Lilburn  Lewis,  the  son  of  Jef- 
erson's  sister.  He  was  the  wealthy  owner  of  a  considerable 
number  of  slaves,  whom  he  drove  constantly,  fed  sparingly, 
and  lashed  severely.  The  consequence  was,  they  would 
run  away.  Among  the  rest  was  an  ill -grown  boy,  about 
seventeen,  who,  having  just  returned  from  a  skulking  spell, 
was  sent  to  the  spring  for  water,  and,  in  returning,  let  fall 
an  elegant  pitcher,  which  dashed  to  shivers  on  the  rocks. 
It  was  night,  and  the  slaves  were  all  at  home.  The  mas. 
ter  had  them  collected  into  the  most  roomy  negro-house, 
and  a  rousing  fire  made."  (Reader,' what  follows  is  very 
shocking;  but  I  have  already  said  we  must  not  allow  our 
nerves  to  be  more  sensitive  than  our  consciences.  If  such 
things  are  done  in  our  country,  it  is  important  that  we  should 
know  of  them,  and  seriously  reflect  upon  them.)  "  The  door 
was  fastened,  that  none  of  the  negroes,  either  through  fear 
or  sympathy,  should  attempt  to  escape ;  he  then  told  them 
that  the  design  of  this  meeting  was  to  teach  them  to  remain 
at  home  and  obey  his  orders.  All  things  being  now  in  train, 
George  was  called  up,  and  by  the  assistance  of  his  younger 
brother,  laid  on  a  broad  bench  or  block.  The  master  then 
cut  off  his  ancles  with  a  broad  axe.  In  vain  the  unhappy 
victim  screamed.  Not  a  hand  among  so  many  dared  to 
interfere.  Having  cast  the  feet  into  the  fire,  he  lectured 
the  negroes  at  some  length.  He  then  proceeded  to  cut  off 
his  limbs  below  the  knees.  The  sufferer  besought  him  to 
begin  with  his  head.  It  was  in  vain — the  master  went  on 


ON    ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  27 

thus,  until  trunk,  arms,  and  head,  were  all  in  the  fire.  Still 
protracting  the  intervals  with  lectures,  and  threatenings  of 
like  punishment,  in  case  any  of  them  were  disobedient,  or 
,  ran  away,  or  disclosed  the  tragedy  they  were  compelled  to 
witness.  In  order  to  consume  the  bones,  the  fire  was  briskly 
stirred  until  midnight :  when,  as  if  heaven  and  earth  com- 
bined to  show  their  detestation  of  the  deed,  a  sudden  shock 
of  earthquake  threw  down  the  heavy  wall,  composed  of  rock 
and  clay,  extinguished  the  fire,  and  covered  the  remains  of 
George.  The  negroes  were  allowed  to  disperse,  with  charges 
to  keep  the  secret,  under  the  penalty  of  like  punishment. 
When  his  wife  asked  the  cause  of  the  dreadful  screams  she 
had  heard,  he  said  that  he  had  never  enjoyed  himself  so  well 
at  a  ball  as  he  had  enjoyed  himself  that  evening.  Next 
morning,  he  ordered  the  wall  to  be  rebuilt,  and  he  himself 
superintended,  picking  up  the  remains  of  the  boy,  and  placing 
them  within  the  new  wall,  thus  hoping  to  conceal  the  mat- 
ter. But  some  of  the  negroes  whispered  the  horrid  deed ; 
the  neighbors  tore  down  the  wall,  and  finding  the  remains, 
they  testified  against  him.  He  was  bound  over  to  await  the 
sitting  of  the  court ;  but  before  that  period  arrived,  he  com- 
mitted suicide." 

"  N.  B.  This  happened  in  1811  ;  if  I  be  correct,  it  was  on 
the  16th  of  December.  It  was  on  the  Sabbath." 

Mr.  Rankin  adds,  there  was  little  probability  that  Mr. 
Lewis  would  have  fallen  under  the  sentence  of  the  law. 
Notwithstanding  the  peculiar  enormity  of  his  offence,  there 
were  individuals  who  combined  to  let  him  out  of  prison,  in 
order  to  screen  him  from  justice. 

Another  instance  of  summary  punishment  inflicted  on  a 
runaway  slave,  is  told  by  a  respectable  gentleman  from  South 
Carolina,  with  whom  I  am  acquainted.  He  was  young, 
when  the  circumstance  occurred,  in  the  neighborhood  of  his 
home  ;  and  it  filled  him  with  horror.  A  slave  being  missing, 
several  planters  united  in  a  negro  hunt,  as  it  is  called.  They 
set  out  with  dogs,  guns,  and  horses,  as  they  would  to  chase 
a  tiger.  The  poor  fellow,  being  discovered,  took  refuge  in 
a  tree  ;  where  he  was  deliberately  shot  by  his  pursuers. 

In  some  of  the  West  Indies,  blood-hounds  are  employed  to 
hunt  negroes ;  and  this  fact  is  the  foundation  of  one  of  the 
most  painfully  interesting  scenes  in  Miss  Martineau's  Deme- 
rara.  A  writer  by  the  name  of  Dallas  has  the  hardihood  to 
assert  that  it  is  mere  sophistry  to  censure  the  practice  of 


28  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

training  dogs  to  devour  men.  He  asks,  "  Did  not  the  Asi- 
atics employ  elephants  in  war?  If  a  man  were  bitten  by  a 
mad  dog,  would  he  hesitate  to  cut  off  the  wounded  part  in 
order  to  save  his  life  ?" 

It  is  said  that  when  the  first  pack  of  blood-hounds  arrived 
in  St.  Domingo,  the  white  planters  delivered  to  them  the  first 
negro  they  found,  merely  by  way  of  experiment :  and  when 
they  saw  him  immediately  torn  in  pieces,  they  were  highly 
delighted  to  find  the  dogs  so  well  trained  to  their  business. 

Some  authentic  records  of  female  cruelty  would  seem  per. 
fectly  incredible,  were  it  not  an  established  law  of  our  nature 
that  tyranny  becomes  a  habit,  and  scenes  of  suffering,  often 
repeated,  render  the  heart  callous. 

A  young  friend  of  mine,  remarkable  for  the  kindness  of 
his  disposition  and  the  courtesy  of  his  manners,  told  me  that 
he  was  really  alarmed  at  the  change  produced  in  his  char- 
acter  by  a  few  months'  residence  in  the  West  Indies.  The 
family  who  owned  the  plantation  were  absent,  and  he  saw 
nothing  around  him  but  slaves  ;  the  consequence  was  that 
he  insensibly  acquired  a  dictatorial  manner,  and  habitual 
disregard  to  the  convenience  of  his  inferiors.  The  candid 
admonition  of  a  friend  made  him  aware  of  this,  arid  his  nat- 
ural amiability  was  restored. 

The  ladies  who  remove  from  the  free  States  into  the  slave- 
holding  ones  almost  invariably  write  that  the  sight  of  slavery 
was  at  first  exceedingly  painful ;  but  that  they  soon  become 
habituated  to  it ;  and,  after  awhile,  they  are  very  apt  to 
vindicate  the  system,  upon  the  ground  that  it  is  extremely 
convenient  to  have  such  submissive  servants.  This  reason 
was  actually  given  by  a  lady  of  my  acquaintance,  who  is 
considered  an  unusually  fervent  Christian.  Yet  Christianity 
expressly  teaches  us  to  love  our  neighbor  as  ourselves. 
This  shows  how  dangerous  it  is,  for  even  the  best  of  us,  to 
become  accustomed  to  what  is  wrong. 

A  judicious  and  benevolent  friend  lately  told  me  the  story 
of  one  of  her  relatives,  who  married  a  slave-owner,  and  re- 
moved to  his  plantation.  The  lady  in  question  was  consid- 
ered very  amiable,  and  had  a  serene,  affectionate  expression 
of  countenance.  After  several  years'  residence  among  her 
slaves,  she  visited  New-England.  "  Her  history  was  written 
in  her  face,"  said  my  friend ;  "  its  expression  had  changed 
into  that  of  a  fiend.  She  brought  but  few  slaves  with  her ; 
and  those  few  were  of  course  compelled  to  perform  additional 


ON    ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  29 

labor.  One  faithful  negro-woman  nursed  the  twins  of  her 
mistress,  and  did  all  the  washing,  ironing,  and  scouring. 
If,  after  a  sleepless  night  with  the  restless  babes,  (driven  from 
the  bosom  of  their  own  mother,)  she  performed  her  toilsome 
avocations  with  diminished  activity,  her  mistress,  with  her 
own  lady-like  hands,  applied  the  cowskin,  and  the  neigh- 
borhood  resounded  with  the  cries  of  her  victim.  The  in- 
strument of  punishment  was  actually  kept  hanging  in  the 
entry,  to  the  no  small  disgust  of  her  New-England  visiters. 
For  my  part,"  continued  my  friend,  «*  I  did  not  try  to  be 
polite  to  her ;  for  I  was  not  hypocrite  enough  to  conceal  my 
indignation." 

The  following  occurred  near  Natchez,  and  was  told  to  me 
by  a  highly  intelligent  man,  who,  being  a  diplomatist  and  a 
courtier,  was  very  likely  to  make  the  best  of  national  evils: 
A  planter  had  occasion  to  send  a  female  slave  some  distance 
on  an  errand.  She  did  not  return  so  soon  as  he  expected, 
and  he  grew  angry.  At  last  he  gave  orders  that  she  should 
be  severely  whipped  when  she  came  back.  When  the  poor 
creature  arrived,  she  pleaded  for  mercy,  saying  she  had 
been  so  very  ill,  that  she  was  obliged  to  rest  in  the  fields ; 
but  she  was  ordered  to  receive  another  dozen  lashes,  for  hav- 
ing had  the  impudence  to  speak.  She  died  at  the  whipping- 
post;  nor  did  she  perish  alone — a  new-born  baby  died  with 
her.  The  gentleman  who  told  me  this  fact,  witnessed  the 
poor  creature's  funeral.  It  is  true,  the  master  was  univer- 
sally blamed  and  shunned  for  the  cruel  deed ;  but  the  laws 
were  powerless. 

I  shall  be  told  that  such  examples  as  these  are  of  rare 
occurrence  ;  and  I  have  no  doubt  that  instances  of  excessive 
severity  are  far  from  being  common.  I  believe  that  a  large 
proportion  of  masters*are  as  kind  to  their  slaves  as  they  can 
be,  consistently  with  keeping  them  in  bondage ;  but  it  must 
be  allowed  that  this,  to  make  the  best  of  it,  is  very  stinted 
kindness.  And  let  it  never  be  forgotten  that  the  negro's 
fate  depends  entirely  on  the  character  of  his  master;  and  it 
is  a  mere  matter  of  chance  whether  he  fall  into  merciful  or 
unmerciful  hands ;  his  happiness,  nay,  his  very  life,  depends 
on  chance. 

The  slave-owners  are  always  telling  us,  that  the  account! 
of  slave  misery  are  abominably  exaggerated  ;  and  their  plea 
is  supported  by  many  individuals,  who  seem  to  think  that 
charity  was  made  to  cover  sins,  not  to  cure  them.  But 

3* 


30  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

without  listening  to  the  zealous  opposers  of  slavery,  we  shall 
find  in  the  judicial  reports  of  the  Southern  States,  and  in  the 
ordinary  details  of  their  newspapers,  more  than  enough  to 
startle  us ;  besides,  we  must  not  forget  that  where  one  in- 
stance of  cruelty  comes  to  our  knowledge,  hundreds  are 
kept  secret ;  and  the  more  public  attention  is  awakened  to 
the  subject,  the  more  caution  will  be  used  in  this  respect. 

Why  should  we  be  deceived  by  the  sophistry  of  those 
whose  interest  it  is  to  gloss  over  iniquity,  and  who  from  long 
habit  have  learned  to  believe  that  it  is  no  iniquity  ?  It  is 
a  very  simple  process  to  judge  rightly  in  this  matter.  Just 
ask  yourself  the  question  where  you  could  find  a  set  of  men, 
in  whose  power  you  would  be  willing  to  place  yourself,  if 
the  laws  allowed  them  to  sin  against  you  with  impunity? 

But  k  is  urged  that  it  is  the  interest  of  planters  to  treat  their 
slaves  well.  This  argument  no  doubt  has  some  force  ;  and 
it  is  the  poor  negro's  only  security.  But  it  is  likewise  the 
interest  of  men  to  treat  their  cattle  kindly ;  yet  we  see  that 
passion  and  short-sighted  avarice  do  overcome  the  strongest 
motives  of  interest.  Cattle  are  beat  unmercifully,  sometimes 
unto  death ;  they  are  ruined  by  being  over- worked  ;  weak- 
ened  by  want  of  sufficient  food  ;  and  so  forth.  Besides,  it 
is  sometimes  directly  jfor  the  interest  of  the  planter  to  work 
his  slaves  beyond  their  strength.  When  there  is  a  sudden 
rise  in  the  prices  of  sugar,  a  certain  amount  of  labor  in  a 
given  time  is  of  more  consequence  to  the  owner  of  a  planta- 
tion than  the  price  of  several  slaves ;  he  can  well  afford  to 
waste  a  few  lives.  This  is  no  idle  hypothesis — such  calcu- 
lations are  gravely  and  openly  made  by  planters.  Hence, 
it  is  the  slave's  prayer  that  sugars  may  be  cheap.  When 
the  negro  is  old,  or  feeble  from  incurable  disease,  is  it  his 
master's  interest  to  feed  him  well,  and  clothe  him  comforta- 
bly ?  Certainly  not :  it  then  becomes  desirable  to  get  rid 
of  the  human  brute  as  soon  as  convenient.  It  is  a  common 
remark,  that  it  is  not  quite  safe,  in  most  cases,  for  even  pa- 
rents to  be  entirely  dependant  on  the  generosity  of  their  chil- 
dren ;  and  if  human  nature  be  such,  what  has  the  slave  to 
expect,  when  he  becomes  a  mere  bill  of  expense? 

It  is  a  common  retort  to  say  that  New-Englanders  who 
go  to  the  South,  soon  learn  to  patronize  the  system  they 
have  considered  so  abominable,  and  often  become  proverbial 
for  their  severity.  I  have  not  the  least  doubt  of  the  fact ; 
for  slavery  contaminates  all  that  comes  within  its  influence. 


ON    ALL    CONCERNED   IN    IT-  Oi 

It  would  be  very  absurd  to  imagine  that  the  inhabitants  of  one 
State  are  worse  than  the  inhabitants  of  another,  unless  some 
peculiar  circumstances,  of  universal  influence,  tend  to  make 
them  so.  Human  nature  is  every  where  the  same  ;  but  de- 
veloped differently,  by  different  incitements  and  temptations. 
It  is  the  business  of  wise  legislation  to  discover  what  influ- 
ences are  most  productive  of  good,  and  the  least  conducive 
to  evil.  If  we  were  educated  at  the  South,  we  should  no 
doubt  vindicate  slavery,  and  inherit  as  a  birthright  all  the 
evils  it  engrafts  upon  the  character.  If  they  lived  on  our 
rocky  soil,  and  under  our  inclement  skies,  their  shrewdness 
would  sometimes  border  upon  knavery,  and  their  frugality 
sometimes  degenerate  into  parsimony.  We  both  have  our 
virtues  and  our  faults,  induced  by  the  influences  under  which 
we  live,  and,  of  course,  totally  different  in  their  character. 
Our  defects  are  bad  enough ;  but  they  cannot,  like  slavery, 
affect  the  destiny  and  rights  of  millions. 

All  this  mutual  recrimination  about  horse-jockeys,  gam- 
blers, tin-pedlers,  and  venders  of  wooden-nutmegs,  is  quite 
unworthy  of  a  great  nation.  Instead  of  calmly  examining 
this  important  subject  on  the  plain  grounds  of  justice  and 
humanity,  we  allow  it  to  degenerate  into  a  mere  question  of 
sectional  pride  and  vanity.  [Pardon  the  Americanism,  would 
we  had  less  use  for  the  word  !]  It  is  the  system,  not  the  men, 
on  which  we  ought  to  bestow  the  full  measure  of  abhorrence. 
If  we  were  willing  to  forget  ourselves,  and  could  like  true 
republicans,  prefer  the  common  good  to  all  other  considera- 
tions, there  would  not  be  a  slave  in  the  United  States,  at  the 
end  of  half  a  century. 

The  arguments  in  support  of  slavery  are  all  hollow  and 
deceptive,  though  frequently  very  specious.  No  one  thinks 
of  finding  a  foundation  for  the  system  in  the  principles  of 
truth  and  justice ;  and  the  unavoidable  result  is,  that  even 
in  policy  it  is  unsound.  The  monstrous  fabric  rests  on  the 
mere  appearance  of  present  expediency ;  while,  in  fact,  all 
its  tendencies,  individual  and  national,  present  and  remote, 
are  highly  injurious  to  the  true  interests  of  the  country.  The 
slave-owner  will  not  believe  this.  The  stronger  the  evidence 
against  his  favorite  theories,  the  more  strenuously  he  defends 
them.  It  has  been  wisely  said,  "  Honesty  is  the  best  policy  ; 
but  policy  without  honesty  never  finds  that  out." 

I  hope  none  will  be  so  literal  as  to  suppose  I  intend  to  say 
that  no  planter  can  be  honest,  in  the  common  acceptation  of 


32  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

that  term.  I  simply  mean  that  all  who  ground  their  argu- 
ments in  policy,  and  not  in  duty  and  plain  truth,  are  really 
blind  to  the  highest  and  best  interests  of  man. 

Among  other  apologies  for  slavery,  it  has  been  asserted 
that  the  Bible  does  not  forbid  it.  Neither  does  it  forbid  the 
counterfeiting  of  a  bank-bill.  It  is  the  spirit  of  the  Holy 
Word,  not  its  particular  expressions,  which  must  be  a  rule 
for  our  conduct.  How  can  slavery  be  reconciled  with  the 
maxim,  "  Do  unto  others,  as  ye  would  that  others  should  do 
unto  you ?"  Does  not  the  command,  "  Thou  shalt  not  steal" 
prohibit  kidnapping?  And  how  does  whipping  men  to  death 
agree  with  the  injunction,  "  Thou  shalt  do  no  murder?"  Are 
we  not  told  "  to  loose  the  bands  of  wickedness,  to  undo  the 
heavy  burdens,  to  let  the  oppressed  go  free,  and  to  break 
every  yoke  ?"  Ft  was  a  Jewish  law  that  he  who  stole  a  man, 
or  sold  him,  or  he  in  whose  hands  the  stolen  man  was  found, 
should  suffer  death ;  and  he  in  whose  house  a  fugitive  slave 
sought  an  asylum  was  forbidden  to  give  him  up  to  his  master. 
Modern  slavery  is  so  unlike  Hebrew  servitude,  and  its  regu- 
lations are  so  diametrically  opposed  to  the  rules  of  the  Gos- 
pel, which  came  to  bring  deliverance  to  the  captive,  that  it 
is  idle  to  dwell  upon  this  point.  The  advocates  of  this  system 
seek  for  arguments  in  the  history  of  every  age  and  nation  ; 
but  the  fact  is,  negro-slavery  is  totally  different  from  any 
other  form  of  bondage  that  ever  existed  ;  and  if  it  were  not 
so,  are  we  to  copy  the  evils  of  bad  governments  and  be- 
nighted ages? 

The  difficulty  of  subduing  slavery,  on  account  of  the  great 
number  of  interests  which  become  united  in  it,  and  the  pro- 
digious  strength  of  the  selfish  passions  enlisted  in  its  support, 
is  by  no  means  its  least  alarming  feature.  This  Hydra  has 
ten  thousand  heads,  every  one  of  which  will  bite  or  growl, 
when  the  broad  daylight  of  truth  lays  opon  the  secrets  of 
its  hideous  den. 

I  shall  perhaps  be  asked  why  I  have  said  so  much  about 
the  slave4raofe,  since  it  was  long  ago  abolished  in  this  coun- 
try ?  There  are  several  good  reasons  for  it.  In  the  first 
place,  it  is  a  part  of  the  system  ;  for  if  there  were  no  slaves, 
there  could  be  no  slave-trade ;  and  while  there  are  slaves, 
the  slave-trade  will  continue..  In  the  next  place,  the  trade 
is  still  briskly  carried  on  in  Africa,  and  slaves  are  smuggled 
into  these  States  through  the  Spanish  colonies.  In  the  third 
place,  a  very  extensive  internal  slave-trade  is  carried  on  in 


ON    ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  33 

this  country.  The  breeding  of  negro-cattle  for  the  foreign 
markets,  (of  Louisiana,  Georgia,  Alabama,  Arkansas,  and 
Missouri,)  is  a  very  lucrative  branch  of  business.  Whole 
coffles  of  them,  chained  and  manacled,  are  driven  through 
our  Capital  on  their  way  to  auction.  Foreigners,  particu- 
larly those  who  come  here  with  enthusiastic  ideas  of  Amer- 
ican freedom,  are  amazed  and  disgusted  at  the  sight.*  A 
troop  of  slaves  once  passed  through  Washington  on  the  fourth 
of  July,  while  drums  were  beating,  and  standards  flying. 
One  of  the  captive  negroes  raised  his  hand,  loaded  with  irons, 
and  waving  it  toward  the  starry  flag,  sung  with  a  smile  of 
bitter  irony,  "  Hail  Columbia  !  happy  land  !" 

In  the  summer  of  1822,  a  coffle  of  slaves,  driven  through 
Kentucky,  was  met  by  the  Rev.  James  H.  Dickey,  just  be- 
fore it  entered  Paris.  He  describes  it  thus :  "  About  forty 
black  men  were  chained  together;  each  of  them  was  hand- 
cuffed, and  they  were  arranged  rank  and  file.  A  chain, 
perhaps  forty  feet  long,  was  stretched  between  the  two 
ranks,  to  which  short  chains  were  joined,  connected  with 
the  hand-cuffs.  Behind  them  were  about  thirty  women, 
tied  hand  to  hand.  Every  countenance  wore  a  solemn  sad- 
ness; and  the  dismal  silence  of  despair 'was  only  broken  by 
the  sound  of  two  violins.  Yes — as  if  to  add  insult  to  injury, 
the  foremost  couple  were  furnished  with  a  violin  a-piece ; 
the  second  couple  were  ornamented  with  cockades ;  while 
near  the  centre  our  national  standard  was  carried  by  hands 
literally  in  chains.  I  may  have  mistaken  some  of  the  punc- 
tilios  of  the  arrangement,  for  my  very  soul  was  sick.  My 
landlady  was  sister  to  the  man  who  owned  the  drove  ;  and 
from  her  I  learned  that  he  had,  a  few  days  previous,  bought 
a  negro-woman,  who  refused  to  go  with  him.  A  blow  ou 
the  side  of  her  head  with  the  butt  of  his  whip,  soon  brought 
her  to  the  ground  ;  he  then  tied  her,  and  carried  her  off". 
Besides  those  I  saw,  about  thirty  negroes,  destined  for  the 
New-Orleans  market,  were  shut  up  in  the  Paris  jail,  for  safe- 
keeping. 

But  Washington  is  the  great  emporium  of  the  internal 
slave-trade !  The  United  States  jail  is  a  perfect  storehouse 
for  slave  merchants ;  and  some  of  the  taverns  may  be  seen 
so  crowded  with  negro  captives  that  they  have  scarcely 
room  to  stretch  themselves  on  the  floor  to  sleep.  Judge 

*  See  tho  second  volume  of  Stuart's  "  Three  years  in  North  America." 
Instead  of  being  angry  at  such  truths,  it  would  be  wise  to  profit  by  them. 


34  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

Morrel,  in  his  charge  to  the  grand  jury  at  Washington,  in 
1816,  earnestly  called  their  attention  to  this  subject.  He 
said,  *'  the  frequency  with  which  the  streets  of  the  city  had 
been  crowded  with  manacled  captives,  sometimes  even  on 
the  Sabbath,  could  not  fail  to  shock  the  feelings  of  all  hu- 
mane persons ;  that  it  was  repugnant  to  the  spirit  of  our 
political  institutions,  and  the  rights  of  man  ;  and  he  believed 
it  was  calculated  to  impair  the  public  morals,  by  familiar- 
izing scenes  of  cruelty  to  the  minds  of  youth." 

A  free  man  of  color  is  in  constant  danger  of  being  seized 
and  carried  off  by  these  slave-dealers.  Mr.  Cooper,  a  Rep- 
resentative in  Congress  from  Delaware,  told  Dr.  Torrey,  of 
Philadelphia,  that  he  was  often  afraid  to  send  his  servants 
out  in  the  evening,  lest  they  should  bo  encountered  by  kid- 
nappers. Wherever  these  notorious  slave-jockeys  appear 
in  our  Southern  States,  the  free  people  of  color  hide  them- 
selves, as  they  are  obliged  to  do  on  the  coast  of  Afrca. 

The  following  is  the  testimony  of  Dr.  Torrey,  of  Philadel- 
phia, published  in  1817  : 

"  To  enumerate  all  the  horrid  and  aggravating  instance* 
of  man-stealing,  which  are  known  to  have  occurred  in  the 
State  of  Delaware,  within  the  recollection  of  many  of  tho 
citizens  of  that  State,  would  require  a  volume.  In  many 
cases,  whole  families  of  free  colored  people  have  been  at- 
tacked in  the  night,  beaten  nearly  to  death  with  clubs,  gagged 
and  bound,  and  dragged  into  distant  and  hopeless  captivity, 
leaving  no  traces  behind,  except  the  blood  from  their  wounds. 

"  During  the  last  winter,  the  house  of  a  free  black  family 
was  broken  open,  and  its  defenceless  inhabitants  treated  in 
the  manner  just  mentioned,  except,  that  the  mother  escaped 
from  their  merciless  grasp,  while  on  their  way  to  the  State 
of  Maryland.  The  plunderers,  of  whom  there  were  nearly 
half  a  dozen,  conveyed  their  prey  upon  horses;  and  the 
woman  being  placed  on  one  of  the  horses,  behind,  improved 
an  opportunity,  as  they  were  passing  a  house,  and  sprang 
off.  Not  daring  to  pursue  her,  they  proceeded  on,  leaving 
her  youngest  child  a  little  farther  along,  by  the  side  of  the 
road,  in  expectation,  it  is  supposed,  that  its  cries  would  at- 
tract the  mother ;  but  she  prudently  waited  until  morning, 
and  recovered  it  again  in  safety. 

"  I  consider  myself  more  fully  warranted  in  particular- 
izing this  fact,  from  the  circumstances  of  having  been  at 
Newcastle,  at  the  time  that  the  woman  was  brought  with 


ON    ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  35 

her  child,  before  the  grand  jury,  for  examination ;  and  of 
having  seen  several  of  the  persons  against  whom  bills  of  in- 
dictment were  found,  on  the  charge  of  being  engaged  in  the 
perpetration  of  the  outrage ;  and  also  that  one  or  two  of 
them  were  the  same  who  were  accused  of  assisting  in  seiz- 
ing and  carrying  off  another  woman  and  child  whom  I  dis- 
covered at  Washington.  A  monster  in  human  shape,  was 
detected  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  pursuing  the  occupation 
of  courting  and  marrying  mulatto  women,  and  selling  them  as 
slaves.  In  his  last  attempt  of  this  kind,  the  fact  having  come 
to  the  knowledge  of  the  African  population  of  this  city,  a 
mob  was  immediately  collected,  and  he  was  only  saved  from 
being  torn  in  atoms,  by  being  deposited  in  the  city  prison. 
They  have  lately  invented  a  method  of  attaining  their  object, 
through  the  instrumentality  of  the  laws  : — Having  selected 
a  suitable  free  colored  person,  to  make  a  pitch  upon,  the 
kidnapper  employs  a  confederate,  to  ascertain  the  distin- 
guishing marks  of  his  body  ;  he  then  claims  and  obtains  him 
as  a  slave,  before  a  magistrate,  by  describing  those  marks, 
and  proving  the  truth  of  his  assertions,  by  his  well-instructed 
accomplice. 

"  From  the  best  information  that  I  have  had  opportuni- 
ties to  collect,  in  travelling  by  various  routes  through  the 
States  of  Delaware  and  Maryland,  I  am  fully  convinced  that 
there  are,  at  this  time,  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United 
States,  several  thousands  of  legally  free  people  of  color, 
toiling  under  the  yoke  of  involuntary  servitude,  and  trans- 
mitting the  same  fate  to  their  posterity  !  If  the  probability 
of  this  fact  could  be  authenticated  to  the  recognition  of  the 
Congress  of  the  United  States,  it  is  presumed  that  its  members, 
as  agents  of  the  constitution,  and  guardians  of  the  public 
liberty,  would,  without  hesitation,  devise  means  for  the  res- 
toration of  those  unhappy  victims  of  violence  and  avarice,  to 
their  freedom  and  constitutional  personal  rights.  The  work, 
both  from  its  nature  and  magnitude,  is  impracticable  to  in- 
dividuals, or  benevolent  societies ;  besides,  it  is  perfectly  a 
national  business,  and  claims  national  interference,  equally 
with  the  captivity  of  our  sailors  in  Algiers." 

It  may  indeed  be  said,  in  palliation  of  the  internal  slave- 
trade,  that  the  horrors  of  the  middle  passage  are  avoided. 
But  still  the  amount  of  misery  is  very  great.  Husbands  and 
wives,  parents  and  children,  are  rudely  torn  from  each  other ; 
— there  can  be  no  doubt  of  this  fact :  advertisements  are 


36  THE    EFFECT    OF    SLAVERY 

very  common,  in  which  a  mother  and  her  children  are  of- 
fered  either  in  a  lot,  or  separately,  as  may  suit  the  purchaser. 
In  one  of  these  advertisements,  I  observed  it  stated  that  the 
youngest  child  was  about  a  year  old.* 

The  captives  are  driven  by  the  whip,  through  toilsome 
journeys,  under  a  burning  sun;  their  limbs  fettered;  with 
nothing  before  them  but  the  prospect  of  toil  more  severe 
than  that  to  which  they  have  been  accustomed,  f 

The  disgrace  of  such  scenes  in  the  capital  of  our  republic 
cannot  be  otherwise  than  painful  to  every  patriotic  mind ; 
while  they  furnish  materials  for  the  most  pungent  satire  to 
other  nations.  A  United  States  senator  declared  that  the 
sight  of  a  drove  of  slaves  was  so  insupportable  that  he  al- 
ways avoided  it  when  he  could  ;  and  an  intelligent  Scotch- 
man  said,  when  he  first  entered  Chesapeake  Bay,  and  cast 
his  eye  along  our  coast,  the  sight  of  the  slaves  brought  his 
heart  into  his  throat.  How  can  we  help  feeling  a  sense  of 
shame,  when  we  read  Moore's  contemptuous  couplet, 

"The  fustian  flag  that  proudly  waves, 
In  splendid  mockery,  o'er  a  land  of  slaves?" 

The  lines  would  be  harmless  enough,  if  they  were  false ;  the 
sting  lies  in  their  truth. 

Finally,  I  have  described  some  of  the  horrors  of  the  slave- 
trade,  because  when  our  constitution  was  formed,  the  gov- 
ernment  pledged  itself  not  to  abolish  this  traffic  until  1808. 
We  began  our  career  of  freedom  by  granting  a  twenty  years' 
lease  of  iniquity — twenty  years  of  allowed  invasion  of  other 
men's  rights — twenty  years  of  bloodshed,  violence,  and  fraud ! 
And  this  will  be  told  in  our  annals — this  will  be  heard  of  to 
the  end  of  time  ! 

While  the  slave-trade  was  allowed,  the  South  could  use  it 
to  advance  their  views  in  various  ways.  In  their  represen- 
tation  to  Congress,  five  slaves  counted  the  same  as  three 
freemen ;  of  course,  every  fresh  cargo  was  not  only  an  in- 
crease  of  property,  but  an  increase  of  political  power.  Ample 
time  was  allowed  to  lay  in  a  stock  of  slaves  to  supply  the 

*  In  Niles's  Register,  vol.  xxxv,  page  4, 1  find  the  following :  "  Dealing 
in  slaves  has  become  a  large  business.  Establishments  are  made  at  sev- 
eral places  in  Maryland  and  Virginia,  at  which  they  are  sold  like  cattle. 
These  places  are  strongly  built,  and  well  supplied  with  thumbscrews, 
gags,  cowskins  and  other  whips,  oftentimes  bloody.  But  the  laws  per- 
mit the  traffic,  and  it  is  suffered." 

|  In  the  sugar-growing  States  the  condition  of  the  negro  is  much  more 
pitiable  than  where  cof  ton  is  the  staple  commodity. 


ON   ALL    CONCERNED    IN    IT.  37 

new  slave  states  and  territories  that  might  grow  up ;  and 
when  this  was  effected,  the  prohibition  of  foreign  commerce 
in  human  flesh,  operated  as  a  complete  tariff,  to  protect  the 
domestic  supply. 

Every  man  who  buys  a  slave  promotes  this  traffic,  by 
raising  the  value  of  the  article ;  every  man  who  owns  a 
slave,  indirectly  countenances  it ;  every  man  who  allows 
that  slavery  is  a  lamentable  necessity,  contributes  his  share 
to  support  it ;  and  he  who  votes  for  admitting  a  slave-hold- 
ing  State  into  the  Union,  fearfully  augments  the  amount  of 
this  crime. 


- 


38  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 


CHAPTER    II. 


COMPARATIVE  VIEW  OF  SLAVERY,  IN  DIFFERENT  AGES  AND 
NATIONS. 


1  E'en  from  my  tongue  some  heartfelt  truths  may  fall ; 
And  outraged  Nature  claims  the  care  of  all. 
These  wrongs  in  any  place  would  force  a  tear  ; 
But  call  for  stronger,  deeper  feeling  here." 

1  Oh,  sons  of  freedom  !  equalize  your  laws — 
Be  all  consistent — plead  t»e  negro's  cause — 
Then  all  the  nations  in  your  code  may  see, 
That,  blacK  or  white,  Americans  are  tree." 


BETWEEN  ancient  and  modern  slavery  there  is  this  re- 
markable  distinction — the  former  originated  in  motives  of 
humanity  ;  the  latter  is  dictated  solely  by  avarice.  The 
ancients  made  slaves  of  captives  taken  in  war,  as  an  ame- 
lioration of  the  original  custom  of  indiscriminate  slaughter; 
the  moderns  attack  defenceless  people,  without  any  proVo- 
cation,  and  steal  them,  for  the  express  purpose  of  making 
them  slaves. 

Modern  slavery,  indeed,  in  all  its  particulars,  is  more  odious 
than  the  ancient ;  and  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that  the  condi- 
tion of  slaves  has  always  been  worse  just  in  proportion  to  the 
freedom  enjoyed  by  their  masters.  In  Greece,  none  were 
so  proud  of  liberty  as  the  Spartans ;  and  they  were  a  prov- 
erb among  the  neighboring  States  for  their  severity  to  slaves. 
The  slave  code  of  the  Roman  republic  was  rigid  and  tyran- 
nical  in  the  extreme  ;  and  cruelties  became  so  common  and 
excessive,  that  the  emperors,  in  the  latter  days  of  Roman 
power,  were  obliged  to  enact  laws  to  restrain  them.  In  the 
modern  world,  England  and  America  are  the  most  conspic 
uous  for  enlightened  views  of  freedom,  and  bold  vindication 
of  the  equal  rights  of  man  ;  yet  in  these  two  countries  slavo 
laws  have  been  framed  as  bad  as  they  were  in  Pagan,  iron- 
hearted  Rome ;  and  the  customs  are  in  some  respects  more 
oppressive ; — modern  slavery  unquestionably  wears  its  very 


IN   DIFFERENT   AGES    AND   NATIONS.  39 

worst  aspect  in  the  Colonies  of  England  and  the  United  States 
of  North  America.  I  hardly  know  how  to  decide  their  re- 
spective  claims.  My  countrymen  are  fond  of  pre-eminence, 
and  I  am  afraid  they  deserve  it  here — especially  if  we  throw 
into  the  scale  their  loud  boasts  of  superiority  over  all  the 
rest  of  the  world  in  civil  and  religious  freedom.  The  slave 
codes  of  the  United  States  and  of  the  British  West  Indies 
were  originally  almost  precisely  the  same ;  but  their  laws 
have  been  growing  milder  and  milder,  while  ours  have  in- 
creased  in  severity.  The  British  have  the  advantage  of  us 
in  this  respect — they  long  ago  dared  to  describe  the  monster 
as  it  is ;  and  they  are  now  grappling  with  it,  with  the  over- 
whelming strength  of  a  great  nation's  concentrated  energies. 
— The  Dutch,  those  sturdy  old  friends  of  liberty,  and  the 
French,  who  have  been  stark  mad  for  freedom,  rank  next 
for  the  severity  of  their  slave  laws  and  customs.  The  Spanish 
and  Portuguese  are  milder  than  either. 

I  will  give  a  brief  view  of  some  of  our  own  laws  on  this 
subject ;  for  the  correctness  of  which,  I  refer  the  reader  to 
Stroud's  Sketch  of  the  Slave  Laws  of  the  United  States  of 
America.  In  the  first  place,  we  will  inquire  upon  what 
ground  the  negro  slaves  in  this  country  are  claimed  as  prop, 
erty.  Most  of  them  are  the  descendants  of  persons  kid- 
napped on  the  coast  of  Africa,  and  brought  here  while  we 
were  British  Colonies ;  and  as  the  slave-trade  was  openly 
sanctioned  more  than  twenty  years  after  our  acknowledged 
independence,  in  1783,  and  as  the  traffic  is  still  carried  on 
by  smugglers,  there  are,  no  doubt,  thousands  of  slaves,  now 
living  in  the  United  States,  who  are  actually  stolen  from 
Africa.* 

A  provincial  law  of  Maryland  enacted  that  any  white 
woman  who  married  a  negro  slave  should  serve  his  master 
during  her  husband's  lifetime,  and  that  all  their  children 
should  be  slaves.  This  law  was  not  repealed  until  the  end 
of  eighteen  years,  and  it  then  continued  in  full  force  with 
regard  to  those  who  had  contracted  such  marriages  in  the 
intermediate  time ;  therefore  the  descendants  of  white  women 
so  situated  may  be  slaves  unto  the  prr*3nt  day.  The  doc- 
trine of  the  common  law  is  that  the  offspring  shall  follow  the 
condition  of  the  father ;  but  slave  law  (with  the  above  tem- 
porary exception)  reverses  the  common  law,  and  provides 

*  In  tho  new  slave  States,  there  are  a  great  many  negroes,  who  can 
speak  no  other  language  than  some  of  the  numerous  African  dialects. 


40        'a.         COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

that  children  shall  follow  the  condition  of  the  mother.  Hence 
mulattoes  and  their  descendants  are  held  in  perpetual  bond- 
age,  though  the  father  is  a  free  white  man.  "  Any  person 
whose  maternal  ancestor,  even  in  the  remotest  degree  of  dis- 
tance,  can  be  shown  to  have  been  a  negro,  Indian,  mulatto, 
or  a  mestizo,  not  free  at  the  time  this  law  was  introduced, 
although  the  paternal  ancestor  at  each  successive,  genera- 
tion  may  have  been  a  white  free  man,  is  declared  to  be  the 
subject  of  perpetual  slavery."  Even  the  code  of  Jamaica, 
is  on  this  head,  more  liberal  than  ours ;  by  an  express  Law, 
slavery  ceases  at  the  fourth  degree  of  distance  from  a  negro 
ancestor  :  and  in  the  other  British  West  Indies,  the  estab- 
lished custom  is  such,  that  quadroons  or  mestizoes  (as  they 
call  the  second  and  third  degrees)  are  rarely  seen  in  a  state 
of  slavery.  Here,  neither  law  nor  public  opinion  favors  the 
mulatto  descendants  of  free  white  men.  This  furnishes  a 
convenient  game  to  the  slaveholder — it  enables  him  to  'fill 
his  purse  by  means  of  his  own  vices; — the  right  to  sell  one 
half  of  his  children  provides  a  fortune  for  the  remainder. — 
Had  the  maxim  of  the  common  law  been  allowed, — i.  e.  that 
the  offspring  follows  the  condition  of  the  father, — the  mu- 
lattoes, almost  without  exception,  would  have  been  free,  and 
thus  the  prodigious  and  alarming  increase  of  our  slave  pop- 
ulation might  have  been  prevented.  The  great  augmenta- 
tion of  the  servile  class  in  the  Southern  States,  compared 
with  the  West  India  colonies,  has  been  thought  to  indicate  a 
much  milder  form  of  slavery ;  but  there  are  other  causes, 
which  tend  to  produce  the  result.  There  are  much  fewer 
white  men  in  the  British  West  Indies  than  in  our  slave  States  ; 
hence  the  increase'of  the  mulatto  population  is  less  rapid. 
Here  the  descendants  of  a  colored  mother  never  become  free ; 
in  the  West  Indies,  they  cease  to  be  slaves  in  the  fourth  gen- 
eration, at  farthest ;  and  their  posterity  increase  the  free 
colored  class,  instead  of  adding  countless  links  to  the  chain 
of  bondage. 

The  manufacture  of  sugar  is  extremely  toilsome,  and  when 
driven  hard,  occasions  a  great  waste  of  negro  life ;  this  cir- 
cumstance, together  with  the  tropical  climate  of  the  West 
Indies,  furnish  additional  reasons  for  the  disproportionate  in- 
crease of  slaves  between  those  islands  and  our  own  country, 
where  a  comparatively  small  quantity  of  sugar  is  cultivated. 

It  may  excite  surprise,  that  Indians  and  their  offspring  are 
comprised  in  the  doom  of  perpetual  slavery ;  yet  not  only  is 


IN  DIFFERENT  AGES  AND  NATIONS.        41 

incidental  mention  of  them  as  slaves  to  be  met  with  in  the 
laws  of  most  of  the  States  of  our  confederacy,  but  in  one,  at 
least,  direct  legislation  may  be  cited  to  sanction  their  enslave- 
ment.  In  Virginia,  an  act  was  passed,  in  1679,  declaring 
that  "  for  the  better  encouragement  of  soldiers,  whatever  In 
dian  prisoners  were  taken  in  a  war,  in  which  the  colony 
was  then  engaged,  should  be  free  purchase  to  the  soldiers 
taking  them;"  and  in  1682,  it  was  decreed  that  "all  ser- 
vants brought  into  Virginia,  by  sea  or  land,  not  being  Chris- 
tians, whether  negroes,  Moors,  mulattoes,  or  Indians,  (except 
Turks  and  Moors  in  amity  with  Great  Britain)  and  all  In- 
dians, which  should  thereafter  be  sold  by  neighboring  Indians, 
or  any  other  trafficking  with  us,  as  slaves,  should  be  slaves  to 
all  intents  and  purposes."  These  laws  ceased  in  1691 ;  but 
the  descendants  of  all  Indians  sold  in  the  intermediate  time 
are  now  among  slaves. 

In  order  to  show  the  true  aspect  of  slavery  among  us,  I 
will  state  distinct  propositions,  each  supported  by  the  evi- 
dence of  actually  existing  laws. 

1.  Slavery  is  hereditary  and  perpetual,  to  the  last  moment 
nf  the  slave's  earthly  existence,  and  to  all  his  descendants,  to 
the  latest  posterity. 

2.  The  labor  of  the  slave  is  compulsory  and  uncompensa- 
ted ;  while  the  kind  of  labor,  the  amount  of  toil,  and  the  time 
allowed  for  rest,  are  dictated  solely  by  the  master.     No  bar- 
gain  is  made,  no  wages  given.     A  pure  despotism  governs 
the  human  brute  ;  and  even  his  covering  and  provender,  both 
as  to  quantity  and  quality,  depend  entirely  on  the  master's 
discretion. 

3.  The  slave  being  considered  a  personal  chattel,  may  be 
sold,  or  pledged,  or  leased,  at  the  will  of  his  master.     He 
may  be  exchanged  for  marketable  commodities,  or  taken  in. 
execution  for  the  debts,  or  taxes,  either  of  a  /wing,  or  a  de- 
ceased master.    'Sold  at  auction,  "  either  individually,  or  in 
lots  to  suit  the  purchaser,"  he  may  remain  with  his  family,  or 
be  separated  from  them  for  ever. 

4.  Slaves  can  make  no  contracts,  and  have  no  legal  right 
*o  any  property,  real  or  personal.     Their  own  honest  earn- 

ngs,  and  the  legacies  of  friends  belong,  in  point  of  law,  to 
their  masters. 

5.  Neither  a  slave,  nor  free  colored  person,  can  "be  a  witness 
against  any  white  or  free  man,  in  a  court  of  justice,  however 
atrocious  may  Jiave  been  the  crimes  they  have  seen  him  com- 

4* 


42  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVER  F, 

ro£ :  but  they  may  give  testimony  against  a  fellow-slave,  or 
free  colored  man,  even  in  cases  affecting  life. 

6.  The  slave  may  be  punished  at  his  master's  discretion — 
without  trial — without  any  means  of  legal  redress, — whether 
his  offence  be  real,  or  imaginary :  and  the  master  can  trans, 
fer  the  same  despotic  power  to  any  person,  or  persons,  he  may 
cJioose  to  appoint. 

7.  The  slave  is  not  allowed  to  resist  any  free  man  under 
any  circumstances  :  his  only  safety  consists  in  the  fact  that 
his  owner  may  bring  suit,  and  recover,  the  price  of  his  body, 
in  case  Ids  life  is  taken,  or  his  limbs  rendered  unfit  for  labor. 

8.  Slaves  cannot  redeem  themselves,  or  obtain  a  change  of 
masters,  though  cruel  treatment  may  have  rendered  such  a 
change,  necessary  for  their  personal  safety. 

9.  The  slave  is  entirely  unprotected  in  his  domestic  rela- 
tions. 

10.  The  laws  greatly  obstruct  the  manumission  of  slaves, 
even  where  the  master  is  willing  to  enfranchise  them. 

11.  The  operation  of  the  laws  tends  to  deprive  slaves  of 
religious  instruction  and  consolation. 

12.  The  whole  power  of  the  laws  is  exerted  to  keep  slaves 
in  a  state  of  the  lowest  ignorance. 

13.  There  is  in  this  country  a  monstrous  inequality  of  law 
and  right.     What  is  a  trift 'ing  fault  in  the  ivhite  man,  is  con. 
sidered  highly  criminal  in  the  slave ;  the  same  offences  which 
cost  a  white  man  a  few  dollars  only,  are  punished  in  the  negro 
with  death. 

14.  The  laws  operate  most  oppressively  upon  free  people 
of  color. 

PROPOSITION  1. — Slavery  hereditary  and  perpetual. 

In  Maryland  the  following  act  was  passed  in  1715,  and  is 
still  in  force :  "  All  negroes  and  other  slaves,  already  im- 
ported, or  hereafter  to  be  imported  into  this  province,  and 
all  children  now  born,'  or  hereafter  to  be  born,  of  such  ne- 
groes and  slaves,  shall  be  slaves  during  their  natural  lives." 
The  law  of  South  Carolina  is,  "  All  negroes,  Indians,  (free 
Indians  in  amity  with  this  government,  and  negroes,  mulat- 
toes,  and  mestizoes,  who  are  now  free,  excepted,)  mulattoes 
or  mestizoes,  who  now  are,  or  shall  hereafter  be  in  this  prov 
ince,  and  all  their  issue  born,  or  to  be  born,  shall  be  and 
remain  for  ever  hereafter  absolute  slaves,  and  shall  follow 
the  condition  of  the  mother."  Laws  similar  exist  in  Vir- 


JN    DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  43 

Jginia,  Georgia,  Mississippi,  and  Louisiana.  In  consequence 
of  these  laws,  people  so  nearly  white  as  not  to  be  distin- 
guished from  Europeans,  may  be,  and  have  been,  legally 
claimed  as  slaves. 

PROP.  2. — Labor  compulsory  and  uncompensated,  fyc. 

In  most  of  the  slave  States  the  law  is  silent  on  this  subject ; 
but  that  it  is  the  established  custom  is  proved  by  laws  re- 
straining  the  excessive  abuse  of  this  power,  in  some  of  the 
States.  Thus  in  one  State  there  is  a  fine  often  shillings,  in 
another  of  two  dollars,  for  making  slaves  labor  on  Sunday, 
unless  it  be  in  works  of  absolute  necessity,  or  the  necessary 
occasions  of  the  family.  There  is  likewise  a  law  which 
provides  that  "  any  master,  who  withholds  proper  sustenance, 
or  clothing,  from  his  slaves,  or  overworks  them,  so  as  to  in- 
jure their  health,  shall  upon  sufficient  information  [here  lies 
the  rub]  being  laid  before  the  grand  jury,  be  by  said  jury 
presented  ;  whereupon  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  attorney, 
or  solicitor-general,  to  prosecute  said  owners,  who,  on  con- 
viction, shall  be  sentenced  to  pay  a  fine,  or  be  imprisoned, 
or  both,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court." 

The  negro  act  of  South  Carolina  contains  the  following 
language  :  "  Whereas  many  owners  of  slaves,  and  others, 
who  have  the  care,  management,  and  overseeing  of  slaves, 
do  confine  them  so  closely  to  hard  labor ',  that  they  have  not 
sufficient  time  for  natural  rest ;  be  it  therefore  enacted,  that 
if  any  owner  of  slaves,  or  others  having  the  care,  &c.,  shall 
put  such  slaves  to  labor  more  than  fifteen  hours  in  twenty- 
four,  from  the  twenty-fifth  of  March  to  the  twenty-fifth  of 
September ;  or  more  than  fourteen  hours  in  twenty-four 
hours,  from  the  twenty-fifth  of  September  to  the  twenly-fiflh 
of  March,  any  such  person  shall  forfeit  a  sum  of  money  not 
exceeding  twenty  pounds,  nor  under  five  pounds,  current 
money,  for  every  time  he,  she,  or  they,  shall  offend  therein, 
at  the  discretion  of  the  justice  before  whom  complaint  shall 
be  made." 

In  Louisiana  it  is  enacted,  that  "  the  slaves  shall  be  al- 
lowed half  an  hour  for  breakfast,  during  the  whole  year ; 
from  the  first  of  May  to  the  first  of  November,  they  shall  be 
allowed  two  hours  for  dinner;  and  from  the  first  of  Novem- 
ber to  the  first  of  May,  one  hour  and  a  half  for  dinner :  pro- 
vided, however,  that  the  owners,  who  will  themselves  take 
the  trouble  of  having  the  meals  of  their  slaves  prepared,  be, 


44  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

and  they  are  hereby  authorized  to  abridge,  by  half  an  hour 
a  day,  the  time  fixed  for  their  rest." 

All  these  laws,  apparently  for  the  protection  of  the  slave, 
are  rendered  perfectly  null  and  void,  by  the  fact,  that  the 
testimony  of  a  negro  or  mulatto  is  never  taken  against  a 
white  man.  If  a  slave  be  found  toiling  in  the  field  on  the 
Sabbath,  who  can  prove  that  his  master  commanded  him  to 
do  it  ? 

The  law  of  Louisiana  stipulates  that  a  slave  shall  have 
one  linen  shirt,*  and  a  pair  of  pantaloons  for  the  summer, 
and  one  linen  shirt  and  a  woollen  great-coat  and  pantaloons 
for  the  winter  ;  and  for  food,  one  pint  of  salt,  and  a  barrel 
of  Indian  corn,  rice,  or  beans,  every  month.  In  North  Car- 
olina, the  law  decides  that  a  quart  of  corn  per  day  is  suffi. 
cient.  But,  if  the  slave  does  not  receive  this  poor  allowance, 
who  can  prove  the  fact.  The  withholding  of  proper  suste- 
nance is  absolutely  incapable  of  proof,  unless  the  evidence 
of  the  sufferer  himself  be  allowed;  and  the  law,  as  if  deter- 
mined  to  obstruct  the  administration  of  justice,  permits  the 
master  to  exculpate  himself  by  an  oath  that  the  charges 
against  him  are  false.  Clothing  may,  indeed,  be  ascertained 
by  inspection ;  but  who  is  likely  to  involve  himself  in  quar- 
rels  with  a  white  master  because  a  poor  negro  receives  a 
few  rags  less  than  the  lav/  provides?  I  apprehend  that  a 
person  notorious  for  such  gratuitous  acts  of  kindness,  would 
have  little  peace  or  safety,  in  any  slaveholding  country. 

If  a  negro  be  compelled  to  toil  night  and  day,  (as  it  is  said 
they  sometimes  are,f  at  the  season  of  sugar-making)  who  is 
to  prove  that  he  works  more  than  his  fourteen  or  fifteen 
hours  ?  No  slave  can  be  a  witness  for  himself,  or  for  his 
fellow-slaves  ;  and  should  a  white  man  happen  to  know  the 
fact,  there  are  ninety-nine  chances  out  of  a  hundred,  that  he 
will  deem  it  prudent  to  be  silent.  And  here  I  would  remark 
that  even  in  the  island  of  Jamaica,  where  the  laws  have 
given  a  most  shocking  license  to  cruelty, — even  in  Jamaica, 
the  slave  is  compelled  to  work  but  ten  hours  a  day,  beside 
having  many  holidays  allowed  him.  In  Maryland,  Virginia, 
Georgia,  Pennsylvania,  and  New-Jersey,  the  convicts  con- 
demned  to  hard  labor  in  the  penitentiaries,  are  required  by 
law  to  toil  only  from  eight  to  ten  hours  a  day,  according  to 

*  This  shirt  is  usually  made  of  a  coarse  kind  of  bagging. 

f  See  Western  Review,  No.  2,  on  the  Agriculture  of  Louisiana. 


IN    DIFFERENT    AGES    AND   NATIONS.  45 

the  season  of  the  year  ;  yet  the  law  providing  that  the  in- 
nocent slave  should  labor  but  fourteen  or  fifteen  hours  a  day, 
professes  to  have  been  made  as  a  merciful  amelioration  of 
his  lot ! — In  Rome,  the  slaves  had  a  yearly  festival  called 
the  Saturnalia,  during  which  they  were  released  from  toil, 
changed  places  with  their  masters,  and  indulged  in  unbounded 
merriment;  at  first  it  lasted  but  one  day;  but  its  duration 
afterwards  extended  to  two,  three,  four,  and  five  days  in 
succession.  We  have  no  Saturnalia  here — unless  we  choose 
thus  to  designate  a  coffle  of  slaves,  on  the  fourth  of  July,  rat- 
tling their  chains  to  the  sound  of  a  violin,  and  carrying  the 
banner  of  freedom  in  hands  loaded  with  irons. 

In  Georgia,  "  The  inferior  courts  of  the  severeJ  counties  on 
receiving  information  on  oath  of  any  infirm  slave  or  slaves, 
being  in  a  suffering  condition,  from  the  neglect  of  the  owner 
or  owners,  can  make  particular  inquiries  into  the  situation 
of  such  slaves,  and  render  such  relief  as  they  think  proper. 
And  the  said  courts  may  sue  for  and  recover  from  the  owner 
of  such  slaves  the  amount  appropriated  for  their  relief."  The 
information  must,  in  the  first  place,  be  given  by  a  white  man 
upon  oath  ;  and  of  whom  must  the  "  particular  inquiries"  be 
made?  Not  of  the  slave,  nor  of  his  companions, — for  their 
evidence  goes  for  nothing ;  and  would  a  master,  capable  of 
starving  an  aged  slave,  be  likely  to  confess  the  whole  truth 
about  it?  The  judges  of  the  inferior  courts,  if  from  defect  of 
evidence,  or  any  other  cause,  they  are  unable  to  prove  that 
relief  was  absolutely  needed,  must  pay  all  the  expenses  from 
their  own  private  purses.  Are  there  many,  think  you,  so 
desperately  enamored  of  justice,  as  to  take  all  this  trouble, 
and  incur  all  this  risk,  for  a  starving  slave  ? 

PROP.  3. — Slaves  considered  personal  chattels,  liable  to 
be  sold,  pledged,  «Sfc. 

The  advertisements  in  the  Southern  papers  furnish  a  con- 
tinued  proof  of  this ;  it  is,  therefore,  unnecessary  to  go  into 
the  details  of  evidence.*  The  power  to  separate  mothers 
and  children,  husbands  and  wives,  is  exercised  only  in  the 
British  West  Indies,  and  the  republic  of  the  United  States ! 

In  Louisiana  there  is  indeed  a  humane  provision  in  this 

*  A  white  man  engaged  in  a  disturbance  was  accompanied  by  three 
or  four  slaves ;  his  counsel  contended  that  there  were  not  persons  enough 
in  the  affair  to  constitute  a  riot,  because  the  slaves  were  mere  chattels  m 
the  eye  of  the  law.  It  was,  however,  decided  that  when  liable  to  the  pun- 
ishment of  the  law,  they  were  persons. 


16  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OP    SLAVERY", 

respect :  "  If  at  a  public  sale  of  slaves,  there  happen  to  be 
some  who  are  disabled  through  old  age  or  otherwise,  and 
who  have  children,  such  slaves  shall  not  be  sold  but  with  such 
of  his  or  of  her  children,  whom  he  or  she  may  think  proper 
to  go  with."  But  though  parents  cannot  be  sold  apart  from 
their  children,  without  their  consent,  yet  the  master  may 
keep  the  parents  and  sell  the  children,  if  he  chooses;  in 
which  case  the  separation  is  of  course  equally  painful. — 
"By  the  Code  Noir,  of  Louis  the  Fouiteenth,  husbands  and 
wives,  parents  and  children,  are  not  allowed  to  be  sold  sepa- 
rately. If  sales  contrary  to  this  regulation  are  made  by 
process  of  law,  under  seizure  for  debts,  such  sales  are  de- 
clared void ;  but  if  such  sales  are  made  voluntarily  on  the  part 
of  the  owner,  a  wiser  remedy  is  given — the  wife,  or  husband, 
children,  or  parent  retained  by  the  seller,  may  be  claimed 
by  the  purchaser,  without  any  additional  price ;  and  thus 
the  separated  family  may  be  re-united  again.  The  most 
solemn  agreement  between  the  parties  contrary  to  this  rule 
has  been  adjudged  void."  In  the  Spanish,  Portuguese,  and 
French  colonies,  plantation  slaves  are  considered  real  estate, 
attached  to  the  soil  they  cultivate,  and  of  course  not  liable  to 
be  torn  from  their  homes  whenever  the  master  chooses  to  sell 
them  ;  neither  can  they  be  seized  or  sold  by  their  master's 
creditors. 

The  following  quotation  shows  how  the  citizens  of  this 
country  bear  comparison  with  men  called  savages.  A  re- 
cent traveller  in  East  Florida  says:  "Another  trait  in  the 
character  of  the  Seminole  Indians,  is  their  great  indulgence 
to  their  slaves.  The  greatest  pressure  of  hunger  or  thirst 
never  occasions  them  to  impose  onerous  labors  on  the  ne- 
groes, or  to  dispose  of  them,  though  tempted  by  high  offers, 
if  the  latter  are  unwilling  to  be  sold." 

PROP.  4. — Slaves  can  have  no  legal  claim  to  any  property. 

The  civil  code  of  Louisiana  declares :  All  that  a  slave 
possesses  belongs  to  his  master — he  possesses  nothing  of  his 
own,  except  his  peculium,  that  is  to  say,  the  sum  of  money 
or  moveable  estate,  which  his  master  chooses  he  should  pos- 
sess."— "  Slaves  are  incapable  of  inheriting  or  transmitting 
property." — "  Slaves  cannot  dispose  of,  or  receive,  by  do- 
nation,  unless  they  have  been  enfranchised  conformably  to 
law,  or  are  expressly  enfranchised  by  the  act,  by  which  the 
donation  is  made  to  them." 


IN  DIFFERENT  AGES  AND  NATIONS.        47 

In  South  Carolina  "  it  is  not  lawful  for  any  slave  to  buy, 
sell,  trade,  &c.,  without  a  license  from  his  owner ;  nor  shall 
any  slave  be  allowed  to  keep  any  boat  or  canoe,  for  his  own 
benefit,  or  raise  any  horses,  cattle,  sheep,  or  hogs,  under 
pain  of  forfeiting  all  the  goods,  boats,  canoes,  horses,  &c.t 
&c. ;  and  it  shall  be  lawful  for  any  person  to  seize  and  take 
away  from  any  slave  all  such  goods,  boats,  &c.,  and  to  de- 
liver the  same  into  the  hands  of  the  nearest  justice  of  the 
peace ;  and  if  the  said  justice  be  satisfied  that  such  seizure 
has  been  made  according  to  law,  he  shall  order  the  goods  to 
be  sold  at  public  outcry ;  one  half  of  the  moneys  arising 
from  the  sale  to  go  to  the  State,  and  the  other  half  to  him  or 
them  that  sue  for  the  same."  In  North  Carolina  there  is  a 
similar  law ;  but  half  of  the  proceeds  of  the  sale  goes  to  the 
county  poor,  and  half  to  the  informer. 

In  Georgia,  a  fine  of  thirty  dollars  a  week  is  imposed 
upon  any  master  who  allows  his  slave  to  hire  himself  out  for 
his  own  benefit.  In  Virginia,  if  a  master  permit  his  slave 
to  hire  himself  out,  he  is  subject  to  a  fine,  from  ten  to  twenty 
dollars;  and  it  is  lawful  for  any  person,  and  the  duty  of  the 
Sheriff,  to  apprehend  the  slave.  In  Maryland,  the  master, 
by  a  similar  offence,  except  during  twenty  days  at  harvest 
time,  incurs  a  penalty  of  twenty  dollars  per  month. 

In  Mississippi,  if  a  master  allow  his  slave  to  cultivate  cot- 
ton  for  his  own  use,  he  incurs  a  fine  of  fifty  dollars ;  and  if 
he  license  his  slave  to  trade  on  his  own  account,  he  forfeits 
fifty  dollars  for  each  and  every  offence.  Any  person  trading 
with  a  slave  forfeits  four  times  the  value  of  the  article  pur- 
chased ;  and  if  unable  to  pay,  he  receives  thirty-nine  lashes, 
and  pays  the  cost. 

Among  the  Romans,  the  Grecians,  and  the  ancient  Ger- 
mans, slaves  were  permitted  to  acquire  and  enjoy  property 
of  considerable  value,  as  their  own.  This  property  was  called 
the  slave's  peculium ;  and  "  the  many  anxious  provisions  of 
the  Imperial  Code  on  the  subject,  plainly  show  the  general 
extent  and  importance  of  such  acquisitions." — "The  Roman 
slave  was  also  empowered  by  law  to  enter  into  commercial 
and  other  contracts,  by  which  the  master  was  bound,  to  the 
extent  of  the  value  of  the  slave's  peculium." — "The  Gre- 
cian slaves  had  also  their  peculium ;  and  were  rich  enough 
to  make  periodical  presents  to  their  masters,  as  well  as  often 
to  purchase  their  freedom." 

"  The  Helots  of  Sparta  were  so  far  from  being  destitute 


48  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

of  property,  or  of  legal  powers  necessary  to  its  acquisition, 
that  they  were  farmers  of  the  lands  of  their  masters,  at  low 
fixed  rents,  which  the  proprietor  could  not  raise  without 
dishonor." 

"  In  our  own  day,  the  Polish  slaves,  prior  to  any  recent  al- 
leviations of  their  lot,  were  not  only  allowed  to  hold  property, 
but  endowed  with  it  by  their  lords."—"  In  the  Spanish  and 
Portuguese  colonies,  the  money  and  effects,  which  a  slave 
acquires,  by  his  labor  at  times  set  apart  for  his  own  use,  or 
by  any  other  honest  means,  are  legally  his  own,  and  cannot 
be  seized  by  the  master." — "  In  Africa,  slaves  may  acquire 
extensive  property,  which  their  sable  masters  cannot  take 
away.  In  New-Calabar,  there  is  a  man  named  Amachree, 
who  has  more  influence  and  wealth  than  all  the  rest  of  the 
community,  though  he  himself  is  a  purchased  slave,  brought 
from  the  Braspan  country  ;  he  has  offered  the  price  of  a 
hundred  slaves  for  his  freedom ;  but  according  to  the  laws 
of  the  country  he  cannot  obtain  it,  though  his  master,  who  is 
a  poor  and  obscure  individual,  would  gladly  let  him  have  it." 

Among  the  Jews,  a  servant,  or  slave,  often  filled  the 
highest  offices  of  honor  and  profit,  connected  with  the  family. 
Indeed  slavery  among  this  ancient  people  was  in  its  mildest, 
patriarchal  form ;  and  the  same  character  is  now  stamped 
upon  the  domestic  slavery  of  Africa.  St.  Paul  says,  "The 
heir,  as  long  as  he  is  a  child,  differeth  nothing  from  a  ser- 
vant, [the  Hebrew  word  translated  servant  means  slave] 
though  he  be  lord  of  all."  Gal.  iv.  1.  Again;  "A  wise 
servant  shall  have  rule  over  a  son  that  causeth  shame,  and 
shall  have  part  of  the  inheritance  among  the  brethren." 
Proverbs,  xvii.  2.  The  wealthy  patriarch  Abraham,  before 
the  birth  of  Isaac,  designed  to  make  his  head  servant,  Elea- 
zer  of  Damascus,  his  heir. 

PROP.  5. — No  colored  man  can  be  evidence  against  a 
white  man,  <Spc. 

This  is  an  almost  universal  rule  of  slave  law.  The  advo- 
cates of  slavery  seem  to  regard  it  as  a  necessary  consequence 
of  the  system,  which  neither  admits  of  concealment,  nor 
needs  it.  "  In  one  or  two  of  our  States  this  rule  is  founded 
upon  usage ;  in  others  it  is  sanctioned  by  express  legislation." 

So  long  as  this  rule  is  acted  upon,  it  is  very  plain,  that  all 
regulations  made  for  the  protection  of  the  slave  are  perfectly 
useless ; — however  grievous  his  wrongs,  they  cannot  be  proved. 


IN  DIFFERENT  AGES  AND  NATIONS.        49 

The  master  is  merely  obliged  to  take  the  precaution  not  to 
starve,  or  mangle,  or  murder  his  negroes,  in  the  presence  of 
a  white  man.  No  matter  if  five  hundred  colored  people  be 
present,  they  cannot  testify  to  the  fact.  Blackstone  remarks, 
that  "  rights  would  be  declared  in  vain,  and  in  vain  directed 
to  be  observed,  if  there  were  no  method  of  recovering  and 
asserting  those  rights,  when  wrongfully  withheld,  or  invaded." 
Stephens  says :  "  It  seems  to  result  from  the  brief  and 
general  accounts  which  we  have  of  the  law  of  the  Spanish 
and  Portuguese  settlements,  though  I  find  it  nowhere  ex- 
pressly  noticed,  that  slaves  there  are  not,  in  all  cases  at 
least,  incompetent  witnesses.  But  even  in  the  French  Wind- 
ward Islands  the  evidence  of  negro  slaves  was  admitted 
against  all  free  persons,  the  master  only  excepted  ;  and  that 
in  criminal  as  well  as  in  civil  cases,  where  the  testimony  of 
white  people  could  not  be  found  to  establish  the  facts  in  dis- 
pute. The  Code  Noir  merely  allowed  a  slave's  testimony 
to  be  heard  by  the  judge,  as  a  suggestion  which  might  throw 
light  on  other  evidence,  without  amounting  of  itself  to  any 
degree  of  legal  proof.  But  the  Sovereign  Council  of  Martin- 
ique, humbly  represented  to  his  majesty  that  great  inconve- 
niences might  result  from  the  execution  of  this  law,  by  the 
impunity  of  many  crimes,  which  could  not  be  proved  otherwise 
than  by  the  testimony  of  slaves ;  and  they  prayed  that  such 
evidence  might  be  received  in  all  cases  in  which  there  should 
not  be  sufficient  proof  by  free  witnesses.  In  consequence 
of  this,  the  article  in  question  was  varied  so  far  as  to  admit 
the  testimony  of  slaves,  when  white  witnesses  were  wanting, 
except  against  their  masters." 

PROP.  6. — The  master  has  absolute  power  to  punish  a 
slave,  <fyc. 

Stroud  says,  "  There  was  a  time  in  many,  if  not  in  all  the 
slaveholding  districts  of  our  country,  when  the  murder  of  a 
slave  was  followed  by  a  pecuniary  fine  only.  In  one  State, 
the  change  of  the  law  in  this  respect  has  been  very  recent. 
At  the  present  date  (1827)  I  am  happy  to  say  the  wilful, 
malicious,  deliberate  murder  of  a  slave,  by  whomsoever  per- 
petrated, is  declared  to  be  punishable  with  death  in  every 
State.  The  evil  is  not  that  the  laws  sanction  crime,  but  that 
they  do  not  punish  it.  And  this  arises  chiefly,  if  not  solely, 
from  the  exclusion  of  the  testimony,  on  the  trial  of  a  white 
person,  of  all  those  who  are  not  white." 

5 


50         COMPARATIVE  VIEW  OP  SLAVERY, 

"  The  conflicting  influences  of  humanity  and  prejudice  are 
strangely  contrasted  in  the  law  of  North  Carolina  on  this  sub- 
ject. An  act  passed  in  1798,  runs  thus:  'Whereas  by 
another  act  of  assembly,  passed  in  the  year  1774,  the  kill- 
ing of  a  slave,  however  wanton,  cruel,  and  deliberate,  is 
only  punishable  in  the  first  instance  by  imprisonment,  and 
paying  the  value  thereof  to  the  owner,  which  distinction  of 
criminality  between  the  murder  of  a  white  person  and  one 
who  is  equally  a  human  creature,  but  merely  of  a  different 
complexion,  is  disgraceful  to  humanity,  and  degrading  in  the 
highest  degree  to  the  laws  and  principles  of  a  free  Christian, 
and  enlightened  country,  be  it  enacted,  &c.,  that  if  any  per- 
son shall  hereafter  be  guilty  of  wilfully  and  maliciously  kill- 
ing a  slave,  such  offender  shall,  upon  the  first  conviction, 
thereof,  be  adjudged  guilty  of  murder,  and  shall  suffer  the 
same  punishment  as  if  he  had  killed  a  free  man ;  Provided 
always,  this  act  shall  not  extend  to  the  person  killing  a  slave 
outlawed  by  virtue  of  any  act  of  assembly  of  this  State,  or  to 
any  slave  in  the  act  of  resistance*  to  his  lawful  owner  or 
master,  or  to  any  slave  DYING  under  MODERATE  CORRECTION.'  " 

In  the  laws  of  Tennessee  and  Georgia,  there  is  a  similar 
proviso.  Where  could  such  a  monstrous  anomaly  be  found, 
save  in  a  code  of  slave  laws?  Die  of  moderate  punishment !  J 
Truly,  this  is  an  unveiling  of  consciences ! 

"  To  set  the  matter  in  its  proper  light,  it  may  be  added 
that  a  proclamation  of  outlawry^  against,  a  slave  is  author- 
ized, whenever  he  runs  away  from  his  master,  conceals  him- 
self in  some  obscure  retreat,  and  to  sustain  life,  kills  a  hogj 
or  some  animal  of  the  cattle  kind  ! 

"  A  pecuniary  mulct  was  the  only  restraint  upon  the  wil- 
ful murder  of  a  slave,  from  the  year  1740  to  1821,  a  period 
of  more  than  eighty  years.  I  find  in  the  case  of  The.  State 
vs.  M'Gee,  1  Bay's  Reports,  164,  it  is  said  incidentally  by 
Messrs.  Pinckney  and  Ford,  counsel  for  the  State,  that  the 
frequency  of  the  offence  was  owing  to  the  nature  of  the  pun- 

*  "  It  has  been  judicially  determined  that  it  is  justifiable  to  kill  a  slave, 
resisting,  or  offering  to  resist  his  master  by  force." — Stroud. 

f  "  The  outlawry  of  a  slave  is  not,  I  believe,  an  unusual  occurrence. 
Very  recently,  a  particular  account  was  given  of  the  killing  of  a  black  man, 
not  charged  with  any  offtnce,  by  a  person  in  pursuit  of  an  outlawed  slave ; 
owin2,  as  it  was  stated,  to  tho  person  killed  not  answering  a  call  made  by 
his  pursuers.  Whether  the  call  was  heard  or  not,  of  course  could  not  be 
assertained,  nor  did  it  appear  to  have  excited  any  inquiry."—  Stroud, 


IN  DIFFERENT  AGES  AND  NATIONS.        51 

ishment.  This  was  said  in  the  public  court-house  by  men 
of  great  respectability  ;  nevertheless,  thirty  years  elapsed 
before  a  change  of  the  law  was  effected.  So  far  as  1  have 
been  able  to  learn,  the  following  section  has  disgraced  the 
statute-book  of  South  Carolina  from  the  year  1740  to  the 
present  hour  :  '  In  case  any  person  shall  wilfully  cut  out  the 
tongue,  put  out  the  eye,  cruelly  scald,  burn,  or  deprive  any 
slave  of  any  limb,  or  member,  or  shall  inflict  any  other  cruel 
punishment, — [otherwise  than  by  whipping,  or  beating,  with 
a  hone-whip,  cowskin,  switch,  or  small  stick,  or  by  putting 
irons  on,  or  confining,  or  imprisoning  svch  slave,] — every 
such  person  shall,  for  every  such  offence,  forfeit  the  sum  of 
one  hundred  pounds,  current  money.'  Here  is  direct  legis- 
lation to  sanction  beating  without  limit,  with  horsewhip  or 
cowskin, — the  application  of  irons  to  the  human  body, — and 
perpetual  incarceration  in  a  dungeon,  according  to  the  will 
of  the  master ;  and  the  mutilation  of  limbs  is  paid  by  a  tri- 
fling penalty ! 

"  The  revised  code  of  Louisiana  declares :  *  The  slave  is 
entirely  subject  to  the  will  of  the  master,  who  may  correct 
and  chastise  him,  though  not  with  unusual  rigor,  nor  so  as 
to  maim  or  mutilate  him,  or  to  expose  him  to  the  danger  of 
loss  of  life,  or  to  cause  his  death.'  "  Who  shall  decide  what 
punishment  is  unusual  ? 

In  Missouri,  if  a  slave  refuses  to  obey  his  or  her  master 
mistress,  overseer,  or  employer,  in  any  lawful  commands, 
such  slaves  may  be  committed  to  the  county  jail,  there  to 
remain  as  long  as  his  owner  pleases. 

In  some  of  the  States  there  are  indeed  restraining  laws ; 
but  they  are  completely  ineffectual,  from  the  difficulty  of  ob- 
taining the  evidence  of  white  men. 

11  The  same  despotic  power  can  be  exerted  by  the  attorney, 
manager,  driver,  or  any  other  person  who  is,  for  the  time 
being,  placed  over  the  slave  by  order  of  the  owner,  or  his 
delegates.  The  following  is  the  language  of  the  Louisiana 
code ;  and  it  represents  the  established  customs  of  all  the 
slaveholding  States  :  *  The  condition  of  a  slave  being  merely 
a  passive  one,  his  subordination  to  his  master,  and  to  all  who 
represent  him,  is  not  susceptible  of  any  modification,  or  re- 
striction, [except  in  what  can  incite  the  slave  to  the  commis 
sion  of  crime]  in  such  manner,  that  he  owes  to  his  master, 
and  to  all  his  family,  a  respect  without  bounds,  and  an  abso- 
lute obedience ;  and  he  is  consequently  to  execute  all  the 


52  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OP    SLAVERY, 

orders,  which  he  receives  from  his  said  master,  or  from 
them.'  " 

What  chance  of  mercy  the  slave  has  from  the  generality 
of  overseers,  may  be  conjectured  from  the  following  testi- 
mony  given  by  a  distinguished  Virginian:  Mr.  Wirt,  in  his 
"  Life  of  Patrick  Henry,"  speaking  of  the  different  classes 
jn  Virginia,  says :  "  Last  and  lowest,  a  feculum  of  beings 
called  overseers — the  most  abject,  degraded,  unprincipled 
race — always  cap  in  hand  to  the  Dons  who  employed  them, 
and  furnishing  materials  for  the  exercise  of  their  pride,  in- 
solence,  and  spirit  of  domination." 

The  Gentoo  code,  the  most  ancient  in  the  world,  allowed 
a  wife,  a  son,  a  pupil,  a  younger  brother,  or  a  slave,  to  ba 
whipped  with  a  lash,  or  bamboo  twig,  in  such  a  manner  as 
not  to  occasion  any  dangerous  hurt ;  and  whoever  trans- 
gressed  the  rule,  suffered  the  pun'shment  of  a  thief.  In  this 
case,  the  slave  and  other  members  ^f  the  family  were  equally 
protected. 

The  Mosaic  law  was  as  follows  :  "  If  a  man  smite  the  eye 
of  his  servant,  or  the  eye  of  his  maid,  that  it  perish,  he  shall 
let  him  go  free  for  his  eye's  sake.  And  if  he  smite  out  hia 
man-servant's  tooth,  or  his  maid-servant's  tooth,  ke  shall  let 
him  go  free  for  his  tooth's  sake."  Exodus,  xxi.  26,  27. 

PROP.  7. — The  slave  never  allowed  to  resist  a  white  man. 

It  is  enacted  in  Georgia,  "  If  any  slave  shall  presume  to 
strike  any  white  man,  such  slave,  upon  trial  and  conviction 
before  the  justice,  shall  for  the  first  offence,  suffer  such  pun- 
ishment  as  the  said  justice  thinks  fit,  not  extending  to  life  or 
limb;  and  for  the  second  offence,  death."  It  is  the  same  in 
South  Carolina,  excepting  that  death  is  there  the  punishment 
of  the  third  offence.  However  wanton  and  dangerous  the 
attack  upon  the  slave  may  be,  he  must  submit ;  there  is  only 
one  proviso — he  may  be  excused  for  striking  in  defence  of 
his  master,  overseer,  &c.,  and  of  their  property.  In  Mary, 
land,  a  colored  man,  even  if  he  be  free,  may  have  his  ears 
cropped  for  striking  a  white  man.  In  Kentucky,  it  is  en- 
acted that  "  if  any  negro,  mulatto,  or  Indian,  bond  or  free, 
shall  at  any  time  lift  his  or  her  hand,  in  opposition  to  any 
person  not  colored,  they  shall,  the  offence  being  proved  be- 
fore a  justice  of  the  peace,  receive  thirty  lashes  on  his  or  her 
bare  back,  well  laid  on."  There  is  a  ridiculous  gravity  in 
the  following  section  of  a  law  in  Louisiana :  "  Free  people 


IN    DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  53 

of  color  ought  never  to  insult  or  strike  white  people,  nor  pre- 
sume to  conceive  themselves  equal  to  the  whites  ;  but  on  the 
contrary,  they  ought  to  yield  to  them  on  every  occasion,  and 
never  speak  or  answer  them  but  with  respect,  under  the 
penalty  of  imprisonment,  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
offence." 

Such  laws  are  a  positive  inducement  to  violent  and~vicious 
white  men  to  oppress  and  injure  people  of  color.  In  this 
point  of  view,  a  negro  becomes  the  slave  of  every  white  man 
in  the  community.  The  brutal  drunkard,  or  the  ferocious 
madman,  can  beat,  rob,  and  mangle  him  with  perfect  impu- 
nity. Dr.  Torrey,  in  his  "  Portraiture  of  Domestic  Slavery," 
relates  an  affecting  anecdote,  which  happened  near  Wash- 
ington. A  free  negro  walking  along  the  road,  was  set  upon 
by  two  intoxicated  ruffians  on  horseback,  who,  without  any 
provocation,  began  to  torture  him  for  amusement.  One  of 
them  tied  him  to  the  tail  of  his  horse,  and  thus  dragged  him 
along,  while  the  other  followed,  applying  the  lash.  The 
poor  fellow  died  by  the  roadside,  in  consequence  of  this 
treatment. 

The  owner  may  prosecute  when  a  slave  is  rendered  unfit 
for  labor,  by  personal  violence ;  and  in  the  reports  of  these 
cases  many  painful  facts  come  to  light  which  would  other- 
wise have  remained  for  ever  unknown.  See  Judicial  Reports. 

PROP.  8. — Slaves  cannot  redeem  themselves  or  change 
masters. 

Stroud  says,  "  as  to  the  right  of  redemption,  this  proposi- 
tion holds  good  in  all  the  slaveholding  States  ;  and  is  equally 
true  as  it  respects  the  right  to  compel  a  change  of  masters^ 
except  in  Louisiana.  According  to  the  new  civil  code  of 
that  State,  the  latter  privilege  may  sometimes,  perhaps,  be 
obtained  by  the  slave.  But  the  master  must  first  be  convicted 
of  cruelty — a  task  so  formidable  that  it  can  hardly  be  ranked 
among  possibilities  ;  and  secondly,  it  is  optional  with  the 
judge,  whether  or  not,  to  make  the  decree  in  favor  of  the 
slave." 

If  a  slave  should  not  obtain  a  decree  in  his  favor,  what  has 
he  to  expect  from  a  master  exasperated  against  him,  for 
making  the  attempt  ? 

At  Athens,  so  deservedly  admired  for  the  mildness  of  her 
slave  laws,  the  door  of  freedom  was  opened  widely.  The 
abused  slaves  mijr-ht  fly  to  the  Temple  of  Theseus,  whence 

5* 


54  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

no  one  had  a  right  to  take  them,  except  for  the  purpose  of 
publicly  investigating  their  wrongs.  If  their  complaints  were 
well  founded,  they  were  either  enfranchised,  or  delivered  to 
more  merciful  hands. 

In  the  Roman  Empire,  from  the  time  of  Adrian  and  the 
Antonines,  slaves  were  protected  by  the  laws,  and  undue 
severity  being  proved,  they  received  freedom  or  a  different 
master. 

By  the  Code  Noir  of  the  French  islands,  a  slave  cruelly 
treated  is  forfeited  to  the  crown  ;  and  the  court,  which  judges 
the  offence,  has  power  to  confer  freedom  on  the  sufferer. 
In  the  Spanish  and  Portuguese  colonies,  a  slave  on  complaint 
of  ill-usage  obtains  public  protection;  he  may  be  manumit- 
ted, or  change  his  master. 

PROP.  9. — Slave  unprotected  in  his  domestic  relations. 

In  proof  of  this,  it  is  only  necessary  to  repeat  that  the 
slave  and  his  wife,  and  his  daughters,  are  considered  as  the 
property  of  their  owners,  and  compelled  to  yield  implicit 
obedience — that  he  is  allowed  to  give  no  evidence — that  he 
must  noc  resist  any  white  man,  under  any  circumstances 
which  do  not  interfere  with  his  master's  interest — and  finally, 
that  public  opinion  ridicules  the  slave's  claim  to  any  exclu- 
sive right  in  his  own  wife  and  children.  ?  ^v- 

In  Athens,  the  female  slave  could  demand  protection  from 
the  magistrates  ;  and  if  her  complaints  of  insulting  treatment 
were  well  founded,  she  could  be  sold  to  another  master,  who, 
in  his  turn,  forfeited  his  claim  by  improper  conduct. 

PROP.  10. — The  laws  obstruct  emancipation. 

In  nearly  all  slaveholding  States,  a  slave  emancipated  by 
his  master's  will,  may  be  seized  and  sold  to  satisfy  any  debt. 
In  Louisiana,  fraud  of  creditors  is  by  law  considered  as 
proved,  if  it  can  be  made  to  appear  that  the  master,  at  the 
moment  of  executing  the  deed  of  enfranchisement,  had  not 
sufficient  property  to  pay  all  his  debts ;  and  if  after  payment 
of  debts,  there  be  not  personal  estate  enough  to  satisfy  the 
widow's  claim  to  one  third,  his  slaves,  though  declared  to 
be  free  by  his  last  will,  are  nevertheless  liable  to  be  sold 
for  the  widow's  portion. — In  South  Carolina,  Georgia,  Ala- 
bama,  and  Mississippi,  a  valid  emancipation  can  only  be 
gained  by  authority  of  the  Legislature,  expressly  granted. 
A  slave-owner  cannot  manumit  his  slaves  without  the  formal 


IN   DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  55 

consent  of  the  Legislature.  "  In  Georgia,  any  atterript  to 
free  a  slave  in  any  other  manner  than  the  prescribed  form, 
is  punished  by  a  fine  of  two  hundred  dollars  for  each  offence; 
and  the  slave  or  slaves  are  still,  to  all  intents  and  purposes, 
in  a  state  of  slavery."  A  new  act  was  passed  in  that  State 
in  1818,  by  which  any  person,  who  endeavors  to  enfran- 
chise a  slave  by  will,  testament,  contract,  or  stipulation,  or 
who  contrives  indirectly  to  confer  freedom  by  allowing  his 
slaves  to  enjoy  the  profit  of  their  labor  and  skill,  incurs  a 
penalty  not  exceeding  one  thousand  dollars ;  and  the  slaves 
who  have  been  the  object  of  such  benevolence,  are  ordered 
to  be  seized  and  sold  at  public  outcry. 

In  North  Carolina,  "no  slave  is  allowed  to  be  set  free, 
except  for  meritorious  services,  to  be  adjudged  of  and  allowed 
by  the  county  court,  and  license  first  had  and  obtained  there- 
upon ;"  and  any  slave  manumitted  contrary  to  this  regula- 
tion may  be  seized,  put  in  jail,  and  sold  to  the  highest  bidder, 
In  Mississippi  all  the  above  obstacles  to  emancipation  are 
combined  in  one  act. 

In  Kentucky,  Missouri,  Virginia,  and  Maryland,  greater 
facilities  are  afforded  to  emancipation.  An  instrument  in 
writing,  signed  by  two  witnesses,  or  acknowledged  by  the 
owner  of  the  slave  in  open  court,  is  sufficient ;  the  court 
reserving  the  power  to  demand  security  for  the  maintenance 
of  aged  or  infirm  slaves.  By  the  Virginia  laws,  an  emanci- 
pated negro,  more  than  twenty-one  years  old,  is  liable  to  be 
again  reduced  to  slavery,  if  he  remain  in  the  State  more 
than  twelve  months  after  his  manumission. 

In  Louisiana,  a  slave  cannot  be  emancipated,  unless  he  is 
thirty  years  old  and  has  behaved  well  at  least  four  years 
preceding  his  freedom ;  except  a  slave  who  has  saved  the 
life  of  his  master,  his  master's  wife,  or  one  of  his  children. 
It  is  necessary  to  make  known  to  the  judge  the  intention  of 
conferring  freedom,  who  may  authorize  it,  after  it  has  been 
advertised  at  the  door  of  the  court-house  forty  days,  without 
exciting  any  opposition. 

Stephens,  in  his  history  of  West  India  slavery,  supposes 
that  the  colonial  codes  of  England  are  the  only  ones  ex- 
pressly framed  to  obstruct  emancipation.  He  is  mistaken  ; 
— the  American  republics  share  that  distinction  with  their 
mother  country.  There  are  plenty  of  better  things  in 
England  to  imitate. 

According  to  the  Mosaic  law,  a  Hebrew  could  not  retain 


56  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

his  brother,  whom  he  might  buy  as  a  servant,  more  than 
six  years,  against  his  consent,  and  in  the  seventh  year  he 
went  out  free  for  nothing.  If  he  came  by  himself,  he  went 
out  by  himself;  if  he  were  married  when  he  came,  his  wife 
went  with  him.  F.xodas  xxi,  Deut.  xv,  Jeremiah  xxxiv. 
Besides  this,  Hebrew  slaves  were,  without  exception,  restored 
to  freedom  by  the  Jubilee. — "  Ye  shall  hallow  the  fiftieth 
year,  and  proclaim  liberty  throughout  the  land,  and  unto  all 
the  inhabitants  thereof."  Leviticus  xxv,  10. 

At  Athens,  if  the  slave  possessed  property  enough  to  buy 
his  freedom,  the  law  compelled  the  master  to  grant  it,  when- 
ever the  money  was  offered. 

The  severe  laws  of  Rome  discouraged  manumission  ;  but 
it  was  a  very  common  thing  for  slaves  to  pay  for  freedom, 
out  of  their  peculium ;  and  public  opinion  made  it  dishonor- 
able to  retain  them  in  bondage  under  such  circumstances. 
"According  to  Cicero,  sober  and  industrious  slaves,  who 
became  such  by  captivity  in  war,  seldom  remained  in  servi- 
tude above  six  years." 

"  In  Turkey,  the  right  of  redemption  is  expressly  regu- 
lated by  the  Koran.  The  master  is  commanded  to  give  to 
all  his  slaves,  that  behave  themselves  faithfully,  a  writing, 
fixing  beforehand  the  price  at  which  they  may  be  redeemed  ; 
and  which  he  is  bound  to  accept,  when  tendered  by  them, 
or  on  their  behalf." 

"  In  Brazil,  a  slave  who  can  pay  the  value  of  his  servi- 
tude, (the  fair  price  of  which  may  be  settled  by  the  magis- 
trate,) has  a  right  to  demand  his  freedom.  And  the  case 
frequently  happens ;  for  the  slaves  have  one  day  in  the  week, 
and  in  some  places  two  days,  exclusively  of  Sundays  and 
other  festivals,  which  the  industrious  employ  in  providing  a 
fund  for  their  redemption." 

"  In  the  Spanish  colonies,  the  law  is  still  more  liberal. 
The  civil  magistrates  are  empowered  to  decide  upon  the  just 
price  of  a  slave,  and  when  the  negro  is  able  to  offer  this 
sum,  his  master  is  compelled  to  grant  his  freedom.  He  may 
even  redeem  himself  progressively.  For  instance,  by  pay- 
ing a  sixth  part  of  his  appreciation,  he  may  redeem  for  his 
own  use  one  day  in  the  week  ;  by  employing  this  industri- 
ously, he  will  soon  be  enabled  to  buy  another  day ;  by  pur- 
suing the  same  laudable  course,  the  remainder  of  his  time 
may  be  redeemed  with  continually  accelerated  progress,  till 
he  becomes  entitled  to  entire  manumission." 


IN  DIFFERENT  AGES  AND  NATIONS.        57 

PROP.   11. — Operation  of  the  laws  interferes  with  religious 
privileges. 

No  places  of  public  worship  are  prepared  for  the  negro ; 
and  churches  are  so  scarce  in  the  slaveholding  States,  com- 
pared  with  the  number  of  white  inhabitants,  that  it  is  not  to 
be  supposed  great  numbers  of  them  follow  their  masters  to 
such  places ;  and  if  they  did,  what  could  their  rude,  and 
merely  sensual  minds  comprehend  of  a  discourse  addressed 
to  educated  men  ?  In  Georgia,  there  is  a  law  which  forbids 
any  congregation  or  company  of  negroes  to  assemble  them- 
selves contrary  to  the  act  regulating  patrols.  Every  justice 
of  the  peace  may  go  in  person,  or  send  a  constable,  to  dis- 
perse any  assembly  or  meeting  of  slaves,  which  may  disturb 
•the  peace,  endanger  the  safety,  &c.,  and  every  slave  taken 
at  such  meetings  may,  by  order  of  the  justice,  without  trial, 
receive  on  the  bare  back  twenty-five  stripes  with  whip, 
switch,  or  cowskin.  In  South  Carolina,  an  act  forbids  the 
police  officers  to  break  into  any  place  of  religious  meeting 
before  nine  o'clock,  provided  a  majority  of  the  assembly  are 
white  persons ;  but  if  the  quorum  of  white  people  should 
happen  to  be  wanting,  every  slave  would  be  liable  to  twenty- 
five  lashes  of  the  eowskin. 

These,  and  various  similar  regulations,  are  obviously  made 
to  prevent  insurrections ;  but  it  is  plain  that  they  must  ma- 
-.terially  interfere  with  -the  slave's  opportunities  for  religious 
instruction.  The  fact  is,  there  are  inconveniences  attending 
a  genera]  diffusion  of  Christianity  in  a  slaveholding  State — 
light  must  follow  its  path,  and  that  light  would  reveal  the 
surrounding  darkness, — slaves  might  begin  to  think  whether 
slavery  could  be  reconciled  with  religious  precepts, — and 
then  the  system  is  quite  too  republican — it  teaches  that  all 
men  are  children  of  the  same  heavenly  Father,  who  careth 
alike  for  all. 

The  West  India  planters  boldly  and  openly  declared,  that 
slavery  and  Christianity  could  not  exist  together ;  in  their 
minds  the  immediate  inference  was,  that  Christianity  must 
be  put  down  ;  and  very  consistently  they  began  to  fme  and 
imprison  Methodist  missionaries,  burn  chapels,*  &c. 

*  The  slaves  of  any  one  owner  may  meet  together  for  religious  pur 
poses,  if  authorized  by  their  master,  and  private  chaplains  may  be  hired 
to  preach  to  them.  The  domestic  slaves,  who  are  entirely  employed  in 
the  family,  no  doubt  fare  much  better  in  this  respect,  than  the  plantation 
slaves ;  but  this,  and  all  other  negro  privileges,  depend  entirely  upon  the 
slave's  luck  in  the  character  of  his  master. 


58  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OP    SLAVERY, 

In  Rome,  the  introduction  of  "Christianity  abolished 
slavery  ;  the  idea  of  exclusive  property  in  our  fellow-men 
was  too  obviously  at  variance  with  its  holy  precepts ;  and 
its  professors,  in  the  sincerity  of  their  hearts,  made  a  formal 
surrender  of  such  claims,  hi  various  ancient  instruments 
of  emancipation,  the  masters  begin  by  declaring,  that,  *  for 
the  love  of  God  and  Jesus  Christ,  for  the  easing  of  their 
consciences,  and  the  safety  of  their  souls,'  they  set  their 
bondmen  free." 

"  It  is  remarkable  that  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  Great 
Britain  used  to  sell  their  countrymen,  and  even  their  own 
children,  to  the  Irish.  The  port  of  Bristol,  afterwards  so 
famous  for  the  African  slave-trade,  was  then  equally  dis- 
tinguished as  a  market  for  the  same  commodity,  though  of  a 
different  color.  But  when  Ireland,  in  the  year  1172,  was 
afflicted  with  public  calamities,  the  clergy  and  people  of  that 
generous  nation  began  to  reproach  themselves  with  the  un- 
christian practice  of  holding  their  fellow-men  in  slavery. 
Their  English  bondmen,  though  fully  paid  for,  were,  by  an 
unanimous  resolution  of  the  Armagh  Assembly,  set  at  liberty. 
Their  repentance  dictated  present  restitution  to  the  injured. 
More  than  six  hundred  years  afterwards,  when  Mr.  VVilber- 
force  made  his  first  motion  for  the  abolition  of  the  slave-trade, 
he  was  supported  by  every  Irish  member  of  the  House  of 
Commons."  May  God  bless  thee,  warm-hearted,  generous 
old  Ireland ! 

In  the  English  and  Dutch  colonies,  baptism  was  generally 
supposed  to  confer  freedom  on  the  slave  ;  and  for  this  reason, 
masters  were  reluctant  to  have  them  baptized.  They  got 
over  this  difficulty,  however,  and  married  self-interest  to 
conscience,  by  making  a  law  that  "no  slave  should  become 
free  by  being  a  Christian."  This  is  a  striking  proof  how 
closely  Christianity  and  liberty  are  associated  together. 

A  French  planter  of  St.  Domingo,  in  a  book  which  he 
published  concerning  that  colony,  admits  that  it  is  desirable 
to  have  negroes  know  enough  of  religion  to  make  them 
friends  to  humanity,  and  grateful  to  their  creator;  but  he 
considers  it  very  wrong  to  load  their  weak  minds  with  a 
belief  in  supernatural  dogmas,  such  as  a  belief  in  a  future 
state.  He  says,  "  such  knowledge  is  apt  to  render  them 
intractable,  averse  to  labor,  and  induces  them  to  commit 
suicide  on  themselves  and  their  children,  of  whic h  the  colony^ 
the  State ,  and  commerce  have  equal  need." 


IN  DIFFERENT  AGES  AND  NATIONS.        59 

Our  slaveholders,  in  general,  seem  desirous  to  have  the 
slave  just  religious  enough  to  know  that  insurrections  and 
murder  are  contrary  to  the  maxims  of  Christianity ;  but  it 
is  very  difficult  to  have  them  learn  just  so  much  as  this, 
without  learning  more.  In  Georgia,  I  have  been  told,  that 
a  very  general  prejudice  prevails  against  white  missionaries. 
To  avoid  this  danger,  old  domestic  slaves,  who  are  better 
informed  than  the  plantation  slaves,  are  employed  to  hear 
sermons  and  repeat  them  to  their  brethren ;  and  their  repe- 
titions are  said  to  be  strange  samples  of  pulpit  eloquence. 
One  of  these  old  negroes,  as  the  story  goes,  told  his  hearers 
that  the  Bible  said  slaves  ought  to  get  their  freedom;  and 
if  they  could  not  do  it  in  any  other  way,  they  must  murder 
their  masters.  The  slaves  had  never  been  allowed  to  learn 
to  read,  and  of  course  they  could  not  dispute  that  such  a 
doctrine  was  actually  in  the  Scriptures.  Thus  do  unjust 
and  absurd  laws  "  return  to  plague  the  inventor." 

PROP.  12. — Whole  power  of  the  laws  exerted  to  keep  negroes 
in  ignorance. 

South  Carolina  made  the  first  law  upon  this  subject. 
While  yet  a  province,  she  laid  a  penalty  of  one  hundred 
pounds  upon  any  person  who  taught  a  slave  to  write,  or 
allowed  him  to  be  taught  to  write.*  In  Virginia,  any  school 
for  teaching  reading  and  writing,  either  to  slaves,  or  to  free 
people  of  color,  is  considered  an  unlawful  assembly,  and  may 
accordingly  be  dispersed,  and  punishment  administered  upon 
each  pupil,  not  exceeding  twenty  lashes. 

In  South  Carolina,  the  law  is  the  same. 

The  city  of  Savannah,  in  Georgia,  a  few  years  ago,  passed 
an  ordinance,  by  which  "  any  person  that  teaches  a  person 
of  color,  slave  or  free,  to  read  or  write,  or  causes  such 
persons  to  be  so  taught,  is  subjected  to  a  fine  of  thirty  dol- 
lars for  each  offence  ;  and  every  person  of  color  who  shall 
teach  reading  or  writing,  is  subject  to  a  fine  of  thirty  dollars, 
or  to  be  imprisoned  ten  days  and  whipped  thirty-nine  lashes." 

From  these  facts  it  is  evident  that  legislative  power  pre- 
vents a  master  from  giving  liberty  and  instruction  to  his 
slave,  even  when  such  a  course  would  be  willingly  pursued 
by  a  benevolent  individual.  The  laws  allow  almost  unlim- 

*  Yet  it  has  been  said  that  these  laws  are  entirely  owing  to  the  rash 
efforts  of  the  abolitionists. 


60 


COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 


ited   power  to  do  mischief ;  but  the   power  to  do  good  is 
effectually  restrained. 

PROP.  13. — There  is  a  monstrous  inequality  of  law  and  right. 

In  a  civilized  country,  one  would  expect  that  if  any  dis- 
proportion existed  in  the  laws,  it  would  be  in  favor  of  the 
ignorant  and  defenceless ;  but  the  reverse  is  lamentably  the 
case  here.  Obedience  to  the  laws  is  the  price  freemen  pay 
for  the  protection  of  the  laws ; — but  the  same  legislatures 
which  absolutely  sanction  the  negro's  wrongs,  and,  to  say 
the  least,  make  very  inadequate  provisions  for  his  safety, 
claim  the  right  to  punish  him  with  inordinate  severity. 

"  In  Kentucky,  white  men  are  condemned  to  death  for 
four  crimes  only ;  slaves  meet  a  similar  punishment  for 
eleven  crimes.  In  South  Carolina,  white  persons  suffer  death 
for  twenty-seven  crimes  ;  slaves  incur  a  similar  fate  for  thirty, 
six  crimes.  In  Georgia,  whites  are  punished  capitally  for 
three  crimes  only ;  slaves  for  at  least  nine. 

Stroud  says  there  are  seventy-one  crimes  in  the  slave 
States,  for  which  negroes  are  punished  with  death,  arid  for 
each  and  every  one  of  these  crimes  the  white  man  suffers 
nothing  worse  than  imprisonment  in  the  penitentiary. 

"  Trial  by  jury  is  utterly  denied  to  the  slave,  even  in 
criminal  accusation  -s  which  may  affect  his  life  ;  in  South  Car- 
olina, Virginia,  and  Louisiana,  instead  of  a  jury,  is  substi- 
tuted a  tribunal  composed  of  two  justices  of  the  peace  and 
from  three  to  fiveyree-holders,  (i.  e.  slave- holders.)  In  Vir 
ginia,  it  is  composed  of  five  justices  merely.  What  chanco 
has  an  ignorant  slave  before  a  tribunal  chosen  by  his  accuser, 
suddenly  convoked,  and  consisting  of  but  five  persons?" 

If  a  slave  is  found  out  of  the  limits  of  the  town  in  which 
he  lives,  or  beyond  the  plantation  on  which  he  is  usually 
employed,  without  a  written  permission  from  his  master,  or 
the  company  of  some  white  person,  any  body  may  inflict 
twenty  lashes  upon  him  ;  and  if  the  slave  resist  such  punish- 
ment, he  may  be  lawfully  killed. 

If  a  slave  visit  another  plantation  without  leave  in  writing 
from  his  master,  the  owner  of  the  plantation  may  give  him 
ten  lashes. 

More  than  se-ven  slaves  walking  or  standing  together  in 
the  road,  without  a  white  man,  may  receive  twenty  lashes 
each  from  any  person. 

Any  slave,  or  Indian,  who  takes  away,  or  lets  loose  a 


IN  DIFFERENT:  AGE&.AND  NATIONS.  61 

*  '  '-•  V  •    *  *+"-* 

boat,  from  any  place  where  i^is  fastened,  receives  thirty, 
nine  lashes  for  the  first  offence ;  and,  according  to  some 
laws,  one  ear  is  cut  off  for  the  second  offence. 

For  carrying  a  gun,  powder,  shot,  a  club,  or  any  weapon 
whatsoever,  offensive  or  defensive,  thirty-nine  lashes  by 
order  of  a  justice ;  and  in  some  States,  twenty  lashes  from 
the  nearest  constable,  without  a  conviction  by  the  justice. 

For  selling  any  article,  without  a  specific  ticket  from  his 
master,  ten  lashes  by  the  captain  of  the  patrolters,*  or  thirty, 
nine  by  order,  of  a  magistrate.  The  same  punishment  for 
being  at  any  assembly  .deemed  unlawful. 

For  travelling  by  himself  from  his  master's  land  to  any 
other  place,  unless  by -the,  most  accustomed  road,  forty 
lashes;  the  same  for  travelling  in,  the  night  without  a  pass; 
the  same  for  being  found  in  another  negro's  kitchen,  or 
quarters ;  and  every  negro  found  in  company  with  such 
vagrant,  receives  twenty  lashes. 

For  hunting  with  dogs,  even  in  the  woods  of  his  master, 
thirty  lashes. 

For  running  away  and  lurking  in  swamps,  a  negro  may 
be  lawfully  killed  by  any  person.  If  a  slave  happen  to  die 
of  moderate  correction,  it  is  likewise  justifiable  homicide. 

For  endeavoring  to  entice  another  slave  to  run  away,  if 
provisions  are  prepared,  the  slave  is  punished  with  DEATH  ; 
and  any  negro  aiding  or  abetting  suffers  DEATH. 

Thirty-nine  stripes  for  harboring  a  runaway  slave  one 
hour. 

For  disobeying  orders,  imprisonment  as  long  as  the  master 
chooses. 

For  riding  on  horseback,  without  written  permission,  or 
for  keeping  a  dog,  twenty-five  lashes. 

For  rambling,  riding,  or  going  abroad  in  the  night,  or 
riding  horses  in  the  day  without  leave,  a  slave  may  be 
whipped,  cropped,  or  branded  on  the  cheek  with  the  letter 
R,  or  otherwise  punished,  not  extending  to  life,  nor  so  as  to 
unfit  him  for  labor. 

For  beating  the  Patuxent  river,  to  catch  fish,  ten  lashes ; 
for  placing  a  seine  across  Transquakin  and  Chick  wicoimo 
creeks,  thirty-nine  lashes  by  order  oC  a  justice. 

*  The  patrols  are  .very  generally  low  and  dissipated  characters,  and 
the  cruelties  which  negroes  suffer  from  them,  while  in  a  state  ofintoxica^ 
tion,  are  sometimes  shocking.  The  law  endows  these  men  with  very 
great  power. 

6 


62  'COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

For  advising  the  murder  of  a  person,  one  hundred  lashes 
may  be  given. 

A  runaway  slave  may  be  put  into  jail,  and  the  jailer  must 
forthwith  send  a  letter  by  mail,  to  the  man  whom  the  negro 
says  is  his  owner.  If  an  answer  does  not  arrive  at  the 
proper  time,  the  jailer  must  inflict  twenty-five  lashes,  well 
laid  on,  and  interrogate  anew.  If  the  slave's  second  state- 
ment  be  not  corroborated  by  the  letter  from  the  owner, 
twenty-five  lashes  are  again  administered. — The  act  very 
coolly  concludes  thus:  "and  so  on,  for  the  space  of  six 
months,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  jailer  to  interrogate  and 
whip  as  aforesaid." 

The  letter  may  miscarry,  the  owner  may  reside  at  a 
great  distance  from  the  Post-Office,  and  thus  long  delays 
may  occur — the  ignorant  slave  may  not  know  his  master's 
Christian  name — the  jailer  may  not  spell  it  aright ;  but  no 
matter — "  It  is  the  jailer's  duty  to  interrogate  and  whip,  as 
aforesaid." 

The  last  authorized  edition  of  the  laws  of  Maryland, 
Comprises  the  following  :  "  If  any  slave  be  convicted  of 
any  petit  treason,  or  murder,  or  wilfully  burning  of  dwelling- 
houses,  it  may  be  lawful  for  the  justices  to  give  judgment 
against  such  slave  to  have  the  right  hand  cut  off,  to  be 
hanged  in  the  usual  manner,  the  head  severed  from  the 
body,  the  body  divided  into  four  quarters,  and  the  head 
and  quarters  set  up  in  the  most  public  places  of  the  coun- 
ty," &c. 

The  laws  of  Tennessee  and  Missouri  are  comparatively 
mild ;  yet  in  Missouri  it  is  death  to  prepare  or  administer 
medicine  without  the  master's  consent,  unless  it  can  be  proved 
that  there  was  no  evil  intention.  The  law  in  Virginia  is 
similar ;  it  requires  proof  that  there  was  no  evil  intention, 
and  that  the  medicine  produced  no  bad  consequences. 

To  estimate  fully  the  cruel  injustice  of  these  laws,  it  must 
be  remembered  that  the  poor  slave  is  without  religious  in- 
struction, unable  to  read,  too  ignorant  to  comprehend  legisla- 
tion, and  holding  so  little  communication  with  any  person 
better  informed  than  himself,  that  the  chance  is,  he  does  not 
even  know  the  existence  of  half  the  laws  by  which  he  suffers. 
This  is  worthy  of  Nero,  who  caused  his  edicts  to  be  placed 
so  high  that  they  could  not  be  read,  and  then  beheaded  his 
subjects  for  disobeying  them. 


IN    DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  63 

PROP.  14. — The  laws  operate  oppressively  on  free  colored 
people. 

Free  people  of  color,  like  the  slaves,  are  excluded  by 
law  from  all  means  of  obtaining  the  common  elements  of 
education* 

*  The  free  colored  man  may  at  any  time  be  taken  up  on 
suspicion,  and  be  condemned  and  imprisoned  as  a  runaway 
slave,  unless  he  can  prove  the  contrary ;  and  be  it  remem- 
bered, none  but  white  evidence,  or  written  documents,  avail 
him.  The  common  law  supposes  a  man  to  be  innocent 
until  he  is  proved  guilty ;  but  slave  law  turns  this  upside 
down.  Every  colored  man  is  presumed  to  be  a  slave  till 
it  can  be  proved  otherwise ;  this  rule  prevails  in  all  the 
slave  States,  except  North  Carolina,  where  it  is  confined  to 
negroes.  Stephens  supposes  this  harsh  doctrine  to  be  pe- 
culiar to  the  British  Colonial  Code ;  but  in  this  he  is  again 
mistaken — the  American  republics  share  the  honor  with 
England. 

A  law  passed  in  December,  1822,  in  South  Carolina,  pro- 
vides that  any  free  colored  persons  coming  into  port  on 
board  of  any  vessel  shall  be  seized  and  imprisoned  during 
the  stay  of  the  vessel ;  and  when  she  is  ready  to  depart,  the 
captain  shall  take  such  free  negroes  and  pay  the  expenses 
of  their  arrest  and  imprisonment ;  and  in  case  of  refusing 
so  to  do,  he  shall  be  indicted  and  fined  not  less  than  one 
thousand  dollars,  and  imprisoned  not  less  than  two  months ; 
and  such  free  negroes  shall  be  sold  for  slaves.  The  Circuit 
Court  of  the  United  States,  adjudged  the  law  unconstitutional 
and  void.  Yet  nearly  two  years  after  this  decision,  four 
colored  English  seamen  were  taken  out  of  the  brig  Marmion. 
England  made  a  formal  complaint  to  our  government.  Mr. 
Wirt,  the  Attorney-General,  gave  the  opinion  that  the  law 
was  unconstitutional.  This,  as  well  as  the  above-mentioned 
decision,  excited  strong  indignation  in  South  Carolina.  Not- 
withstanding the  decision,  the  law  still  remains  in  force,  and 
other  States  have  followed  the  example  of  South  Carolina, 
though  with  a  more  cautious  observance  of  appearances. 

In  South  Carolina,  if  any  free  negro  harbor,  conceal,  or  ; 
entertain,  any  runaway  slave,  or  a  slave  charged  with  any 
criminal  matter,  he  forfeits  ten  pounds  for  the  first  day,  and 
twenty  shillings  for  every  succeeding  day.     In  case  of  ina- 
bility to  pay,  the  free  negro  is  sold  at  auction,  and  if  any 


•  .  •• 

64  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

overplus  remain,  after  the  fines  and  attendant  expenses  are 
^  paid,  it  is  put  into  the^han/ds-of  the  public  treasurer. 

The  free  negro  may" entertain  a  slave  without  knowing 

that 'he  has  done^any  thing  wrong;  but  his  declaration  to 

that  effect  is1  of  no  avail.     Where  every  effort  is  made  to 

prevent  colored  people  from  obtaining  any  money,  they  are 

^of  cdurse  often  unable  to  pay  the  penalties  imposed. 

"If  any  omission  is  made  in  the  forms  of  emancipation 
'established  by  law,  any  person  ichatsoever  may  seize  the 
negro  so  manumitted,  and  appropriate  him  to  their  own  use. 

If  a  free  colored  person  remain  in  Virginia  twelve  months 
after  his  manumission,  he  can  be  sold  by  the  overseers  of  the 
poor  for  the  benefit  of  the  literary  fund! 

Fn  Georgia,  a  free  colored  man,  except  a  regular  articled 
seaman,  is  fined  one  hundred  dollars  for  corning  into  the 
State  ;  and  if  he  cannot  pay  it,  may  be  sold  at  public  outcry. 
This  act  has  been  changed  to  one  of  increased  severity. 
A  free  colored  person  cannot  be  a  witness  against  a  white 
man.  They  may  therefore  be  robbed,  assaulted,  kidnapped 
and  carried  off  with  impunity;  and  even  the  legislatures 
of  the  old  slave  States  adopt  it  as  a  maxim  that  it  is  very 
desirable  to  get  rid  of  them.  It  is  of  no  avail  to  declare 
themselves  free  ;  the  law  presumes  them  to  be  slaves,  unless 
they  can  prove  to  the  contrary.  In  many  instances  written 
documents  of  freedom  have  been  wrested  from  free  colored 
people  and  destroyed  by  kidnappers.  A  lucrative  internal 
slave-trade  furnishes  constant  temptation  to  the  commission 
of  such  crimes;  and  the  new  States  of  Alabama,  Mississippi, 
Missouri,  and  the  territories  of  Arkansas,  and  the  Floridas, 
are  not  likely  to  be  glutted  for  years  to  come. 

In  Philadelphia,  though  remote  from  a  slave  market,  it 
has  been  ascertained  that  more  than  thirty  free  persons  of 
color,  were  stolen  and  carried  off  within  two  years.  Stroud 
says :  "  Five  of  these  have  been  restored  to  their  friends, 
by  the  interposition  of  humane  gentlemen,  though  not  with- 
out  great  expense  and  difficulty.  The  others  are  still  in 
bondage ;  and  if  rescued  at  all,  it  must  be  by  sending  white 
witnesses  a  journey  of  more  than  a  thousand  miles." 

I  know  the  names  of  four  colored  citizens  of  Massachu- 
setts, who  went  to  Georgia  on  board  a  vessel,  were  seized 
under  the  laws  of  that  State,  and  sold  as  slaves.  They 
have  sent  the  most  earnest  exhortations  to  their  families  and 
friends  to  do  something  for  their  relief;  but  the  attendant 


IN    DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  65 

expenses  require  more  money  than  the  friends  of  negroes  are 
apt  to  have,  and  the  poor  fellows  as  yet  remain  unassisted. 

A  New- York  paper,.  November,  1829,  .contains  the  fol- 
lowing caution  : 

"  Beware  of  kidnappers  ! — It  is  well  understood  that  there 
is  at  present  in  this  city,  a  gang  of  kidnappers,  busily  en- 
gaged in  their  vocation  of  stealing  colored  children  for  the 
Southern  market !  It  is  believed  that  three  or  four  have 
been  stolen  within  as  many  days.  A  little  negro  boy  came 
to  this  city  from  the  country  three  or  four  days  ago.  Some 
strange  white  persons  were  very  friendly  to  him,  and  yester- 
day morning  he  was  mightily  pleased  that  they  had  given  him 
some  new  clothes.  'And  the  persons  pretending  thus  to  be- 
friend him,  entirely  secured  his  confidence.  This  day  he 
cannot  be  found.  Nor  can  he  be  traced  since  seen  with 
one  of  his  new  friends  yesterday.  There  are  suspicions  of 
a  foul  nature,  connected  with  some  who  serve  the  police  in 
subordinate  capacities.  It  is  hinted  that  there  may  be  those 
in  some  authority,  not  altogether  ignorant  of  these  diabol- 
ical practices.  Let  the  public  be  on  their  guard !  It  is  still 
fresh  in  the  memories  of  all,  that  a  cargo,  or  rather  drove, 
of  negroes,  was  made  up  from  this  city  and  Philadelphia, 
about  the  time  that  the  emancipation  of  all  the  negroes  in 
this  State  took  place  under  our  present  constitution,  and  were 
taken  through  Virginia,  the  Carolinas,  and  Tennessee,  and 
disposed  of  in  the  State  of  Mississippi.  Some  of  those  who 
were  taken  from  Philadelphia  were  persons  of  intelligence, 
and  after  they  had  been  driven  through  the  country  in  chains, 
and  disposed  of  by  sale  on  the  Mississippi,  wrote  back  to 
their  friends,  and  were  rescued  from  bondage.  The  persons 
who  were  guilty  of  this  abominable  transaction  are  known, 
and  now  reside  in  North  Carolina ;  they  may,  very  prob- 
ably, be  engaged  in  similar  enterprises  at  the  present  time — 
at  least  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  system  of  kidnap- 
ping free  persons  of  color  from  the  Northern  cities  has  been 
carried  on  more  extensively  than  the  public  are  generally 
aware  of." 

This,  and  other  evils  of  the  system,  admit  of  no  radical 
cure  but  the  utter  extinction  of  slavery.  To  enact  laws 
prohibiting  the  slave  traffic,  and  at  the  same  time  tempt  ava- 
rice by  the  allurements  of  an  insatiable  market,  is  irrecon- 
cilable and  absurd. 

To  my  great  surprise,  I  find  that  the  free  States  of  Ohio 
6* 


66  COMPARATIVE    VIEW   OP    SLAVERY, 

and  Indiana  disgrace  themselves  by  admitting  the  same 
maximr  of  law,  which  prevents  any  black  or  mulatto  from 
bein£  a 'witness  against  a  white  man  ! 

It  is  naturally  supposed  that  free  negroes  will  sympathize 
with  their  enslaved  brethren,  and  that,  notwithstanding  all 
exertions  to  the  contrary,  they  jvill  become  a  little  more  in- 
telligent; this  dxcites  a  peculiar  jealousy  and  hatred  in  the 
white  population,  of  which  it  is  impossible  to  enumerate  all 
the  hardships.  Even  in  the  laws,  slaves  are  always  men- 
tioned befor^  free  people  of  coloj ;  so  desirous  are  they  to 
degrade  the  latter  class  below  the  level  of*  the  former.  To 
complete  the  wrong,  this  unhappy  class  are  despised  in  con- 
sequence of  the  very  evils  we  ourselves  have  induced — for 
as  slavery  inevitably  makes  its  victims  servile' -and  vicious, 
and  as  none  but  negroes  are  allowed  to  be  slaves,  we,  from 
our  very  childhood,  associate  every  thing  that  .is  degraded 
with  the  mere  color ;  though  in  fact  the  object  of  our  con- 
tempt may  be  both  exemplary  and  intelligent.  In  this  way 
the  Africans  are  doubly  the  victims  of  our  injustice;  and 
thus  does  prejudice  "  make  the  meat  it  feeds  on." 

I  have  repeatedly  said  that  our  slave  laws  are  continually 
increasing  in  severity  ;  as  a  proof  of  this  I  will  give  a  brief 
view  of  some  of  the  most  striking,  which  have  been  passed 
since  Stroud  published  his  compendium  of  slave  laws,  in  1827. 
In  the  first  class  are  contained  those  enactments  directly  op- 
pressive to  people  of  color ;  in  the  second  are  those  which 
injure  them  indirectly,  by  the  penalties  or  disabilities  imposed 
upon  the  whites  who  instruct,  assist,  or  employ  them,  or  en- 
deavor in  any  way  to  influence  public  opinion  in  their  favor. 

Class  First. — The  Legislature  of  Virginia  passed  a  law 
in  1831,  by  which  any  free  colored  person  who  undertakes 
to  preach,  or  conduct  any  religious  meeting,  by  day  or  night, 
may  be  whipped  not  exceeding  thirty-nine  lashes,  at  the  dis- 
cretion of  any  justice  of  the  peace ;  and  any  body  may  ap- 
prehend any  such  free  colored  person  without  a  warrant. 
The  same  penalty,  adjudged  and  executed  in  the  same  way, 
falls  upon  any  slave,  or  free  colored  person,  who  attends 
such  preaching;  and  any  slave  who  listens  to  any  white 
preacher,  in  the  night  time,  receives  the  same  punishment. 
The  same  law  prevails  in  Georgia  and  Mississippi.  A  mas- 
ter may  permit  a  slave  to  preach  on  his  plantation,  to  none 
but  his  slaves. 

There  is  a  naivete  in  the  following  preamble  to  a  law 


IN   DIFFERENT   AGES   AND   NATIONS.  67 

passed  by  North  Carolina,  in  1831,  which  would  be  amus- 
ing, if  the  subject  were  not  too  serious  for  mirth  :  "  Whereas 
teaching  slaves  to  read  and  write  has  a  tendency  to  excite 
dissatisfaction  in  their  minds,  and  to  produce  insurrection 
and  rebellion,"  therefore  it  is  enacted  that  teaching  a  slave 
to  read  or  write,  or  giving  or  selling  to  a  slave  any  book 
or  pamphlet,  shall  be  punished  with  thirty-nine  lashes,  if 
the  offender  be  a  free  black,  or  with  imprisonment  at  the 
discretion  of  the  court ;  if  a  slave,  the  offence  is  punishable 
with  thirty-nine  lashes,  on  his  or  her  bare  back,  on  con  vie- 
tion  before  a  justice  of  the  peace. 

In  Georgia,  any  slave,  or  free  person  of  color,  is  for  a 
similar  offence,  fined  or  whipped,  or  fined  and  whipped,  at 
the  discretion  of  the  court. 

In  Louisiana,  twelve  months'  imprisonment  is  the  penalty 
for  teaching  a  slave  to  read  or  write. 

For  publishing,  or  circulating,  in  the  State  of  North  Car- 
olina,  any  pamphlet  or  paper  having  an  evident  tendency  to 
excite  slaves,  or  free  persons  of  color,  to  insurrection  or  re- 
sistance, imprisonment  not  less  than  one  year,  and  standing 
in  the  pillory,  and  whipping,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court, 
for  the  first  offence  ;  and  death  for  the  second.  The  same 
offence  punished  with  death  in  Georgia,  without  any  reser- 
vation. In  Mississippi,  the  same  as  in  Georgia.  In  Louis- 
iana, the  same  offence  punished  either  with  imprisonment  for 
life,  or  death,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court.  In  Virginia, 
the  first  offence  of  this  sort  is  punished  with  thirty-nine  lashes, 
the  second  with  death. 

With  regard  to  publications  having  a  tendency  to  promote 
discontent  among  slaves,  their  masters  are  so  very  jealous, 
that  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  any  book,  that  would  not 
come  under  their  condemnation.  The  Bible,  and  the  Dec- 
laration of  Independence  are  certainly  unsafe.  The  pre- 
amble to  the  Northr  Carolina  law  declares,  that  the  Alphabet 
has  a  tendency  to  excite  dissatisfaction  ;  I  suppose  it  is  be- 
cause freedom  may  be  spelt  out  of  it.  A  storekeeper  in 
South  Carolina  was  nearly  ruined  by  having  unconsciously 
imported  certain  printed  handkerchiefs,  which  his  neighbors 
deemed  seditious.  A  friend  of  mine  asked,  "  Did  the  hand- 
kerchiefs contain  texts  from  scripture  ?  or  quotations  from 
the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  ?" 

Emancipated  slaves  must  quit  North  Carolina  in  ninety 
days  after  their  enfranchisement,  on  pain  of  being  sold  for 


68  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

life.  Free  persons  of  color  who  shall  migrate  into  that  State, 
may  be  seized  and  sold  as  runaway  slaves ;  and  if  they 
migrate  out  of  the  State  for  more  than  ninety  days,  they  can 
never  return  under  the  same  penalty. 

This  extraordinary  use  of  the  word  migrate  furnishes  a 
new  battering  ram  against  the  free  colored  class,  which  is 
every  where  so  odious  to  slave-owners.  A  visit  to  relations 
in  another  State  may  be  called  migrating;  being  taken  up 
and  detained  by  kidnappers,  over  ninety  days,  may  be  called 
migrating ; — for  where  neither  the  evidence  of  the  sufferer 
nor  any  of  his  own  color  is  allowed,  it  will  evidently  amount 
to  this. 

In  South  Carolina,  if  a  free  negro  cross  the  line  of  the 
State,  he  can  never  return. 

In  1831,  Mississippi  passed  a  law  to  expel  all  free  colored 
persons  under  sixty  and  over  sixteen  years  of  age  from  the 
State,  within  ninety  days,  unless  they  could  prove  good  char- 
acters,  and  obtain  from  the  court  a  certificate  of  the  same, 
for  which  they  paid  three  dollars ;  these  certificates  might 
be  revoked  at  the  discretion  of  the  county  courts.  If  such 
persons  do  not  quit  the  State  within  the  time  specified,  or  if 
they  return  to  it,  they  may  be  sold  for  a  term  not  exceeding 
five  years. 

In  Tennessee,  slaves  are  not  allowed  to  be  emancipated 
unless  they  leave  the  State  forthwith.  Any  free  colored 
person  emigrating  into  this  State,  is  fined  from  ten  to  fifty 
dollars,  and  hard  labor  in  the  penitentiary  from  one  to  two 
years. 

North  Carolina  has  made  a  law  subjecting  any  vessel  with 
free  colored  persons  on  board  to  thirty  days'  quarantine ; 
as  if  freedom  were  as  bad  as  the  cholera  !  Any  person  of 
color  coming  on  shore  from  such  vessels  is  seized  and  im- 
prisoned, till  the  vessel  departs ;  and  the  captain  is  fined  five 
hundred  dollars  ;  and  if  he  refuse  to  take  the  colored  seaman 
away,  and  pay  all  the  expenses  of  his  imprisonment,  he  is 
fined  five  hundred  more.  If  the  sailor  do  not  depart  within 
ten  days  after  his  captain's  refusal,  he  must  be  whipped 
thirty-nine  lashes ;  and  all  colored  persons,  bond  or  free, 
who  communicate  with  him,  receive  the  same. 

In  Georgia,  there  is  a  similar  enactment.  The  prohibi- 
tion is,  in  both  States,  confined  to  merchant  vessels,  (it  would 
be  imprudent  to  meddle  with  vessels  of  war ;)  and  any  col- 
ored  person  communicating  with  such  seaman  is  whipped 


IN   DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  69 

•not  exceeding  thirty  lashes.  If  the  captain  refuse  to  carry- 
away  seamen  thus  detained,  and  pay  the  expenses  of  their 
imprisonment,  he  shall  be  fined  five  hundred  dollars,  and  also 
imprisoned,  not  exceeding  three  months. 

These  State  laws  are  a  direct  violation  of  the  Laws  of 
Nations,  and  our  treaties;  and  may  involve  the  United  States 
in  a  foreign  war. 

Colored  seamen  are  often  employed  in  Spanish,  Portu- 
guese, French,  and  English  vessels.  These  nations  are  bound 
to  know  the  United  States  Laws  ;  but  can  they  be  expected 
to  know  the  enactments  of  particular  States  and  cities?  and 
if  they  know  them,  are  they  bound  to  observe  them,  if  they 
interfere  with  the  established  rules  of  nations?  When  Mr. 
Wirt  pronounced  these  laws  unconstitutional,  great  excite, 
merit  was  produced  .in  South  Carolina.  The  Governor  of 
that  State,  in  his  Message  to  the  Legislature,  implied  that 
separation  from  the  Union  was  tho  only  remedy,  if  the  laws 
of  the  Southern  States  could  not  be  enforced.  They  seem 
to  require  unconditional  submission  abroad  as  well  as  at  home. 

The  endeavor  to  prevent  insurrections  in  this  way,  is  as 
wise  as  to  attempt  to  extinguish  fire  with  spirits  of  wine. 
The  short-sighted  policy  defeats  itself.  A  free  colored  sai- 
lor was  lately  imprisoned  with  seven  slaves :  Here  was  a 
fine  opportunity  to  sow  the  seeds  of  sedition  in  their  minds  ! 

The  upholders  of  slavery  will  in  vain  contend  with  the 
liberal  spirit  of  the  age ;  it  is  too  strong  for  them.  They 
may  as  well  try  to  bottle  up  the  sunshine  for  their  own  ex- 
clusive use,  as  to  attempt  to  keep  knowledge  and  freedom 
,to  themselves.  We  all  know  that  such  an  experiment  would 
result  in  bottling  up  darkness  for  themselves,  while  exactly 
the  same  amount  of  sunshine  remained  abroad  for  the  use 
of  their  neighbors. 

In  North  Carolina,  free  negroes  are  whipped,  fined,  and 
imprisoned,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court,  for  intermarrying 
with  slaves. 

In  Georgia,  free  colored  persons  when  unable  to  pay  any 
fine,  may  be  sold  for  a  space  of  time  not  exceeding  five  years. 
This  limitation  does  not  probably  avail  much  ;  if  sold  to  an- 
other master  before  the  five  years  expired,  they  would  never 
be  likely  to  be  free  again. 

Several  other  laws  have  been  passed  in  Georgia,  prohib- 
iting slaves  from  living  apart  from  their  master,  either  to 
labor  for  other  persons,  or  to  sell  refreshments^  or  to  carry 


0  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OP   SLAVERY, 

on  any  trade  or  business  although  with  their  master's  con- 
sent.  Any  person  of  color,  bond  or  free,  is  forbidden  to 
occupy  any  tenement  except  a  kitchen  or  an  outhouse,  under 
penalty  of  from  twenty  to  fifty  lashes.  Some  of  these  laws 
are  applicable  only  to  particular  cities,  towns,  or  counties ; 
others  to  several  counties. 

Sundry  general  laws  of  a  penal  nature  have  been  made 
more  penal ;  and  the  number  of  offences,  for  which  a  colored 
person  may  suffer  death,  is  increased. 

A  law  passed  in  Tennessee,  in  1831,  provides  that  negroes 
for  conspiracy  to  rebel,  shall  be  punished  with  whipping,  im- 
prisonment and  pillory,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court ;  it  has 
this  f  .rious  proviso—"  Householders  may  serve  as  jurors,  if 
slan  tolders  cannot  be  had!"*  The  Southern  courts  need 
to  have  a  great  deal  of  discretion,  since  so  much  is  trusted 
to  it. 

Class  Second. — In  Virginia,  white  persons  who  teach  any 
colored  person  to  read  or  write,  are  fined  not  exceeding  fifty 
dollars  ;  for  teaching  slaves  for  pay,  from  ten  to  twenty  dol- 
lars for  each  offence. 

In  Georgia,  a  similar  offence  is  fined  not  exceeding  five 
hundred  dollars,  and  imprisoned  at  the  discretion  of  the  court. 
Knowledge  seems  to  be  peculiarly  pokerish  in  Georgia. 

In  North  Carolina,  if  a  white  person  teach  a  slave  to  read 
or  write,  or  give  or  sell  him  any  book,  dec.,  he  is  fined  from 
one  to  two  hundred  dollars. 

In  Louisiana,  any  white  person,  who  teaches  a  slave  to 
read  or  write,  is  imprisoned  one  year.  And  if  any  person 
shall  use  any  language  from  the  bar,  bench,  stage,  pulpit, 
or  any  other  place, — or  hold  any  conversation  having  a 
tendency  to  promote  discontent  among  free  colored  people, 
or  insubordination  among  slaves,  he  may  be  imprisoned  at 
hard  labor,  not  less  than  three,  nor  more  than  twenty-one 
years  ;  or  he  may  suffer  death — at  the  discretion  of  the  court. 

In  Mississippi,  a  white  man,  who  prints  or  circulates  doc- 
trines, sentiments,  advice,  or  innuendoes,  likely  to  produce 
discontent  among  the  colored  class,  is  fined  from  one  hun- 
dred to  a  thousand  dollars,  and  imprisoned  from  three  to 
twelve  months. 

All  the  States  which  have  pronounced  an  anathema  against 

*  The  Common  Law  assigns  for  the  trial  of  a  foreigner,  six  jurors  of 
his  own  nation,  and  six  native  Englishmen. 


IN    DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  71 

books  and  alphabets,  have  likewise  forbidden  that  any  col- 
ored man  shall  be  employed  in  a  printing-office,  under  the 
penalty  of  ten  dollars  for  every  offence. 

In  Mississippi,  any  white  who  employs,  or  receives  a  free 
colored  person,  without  a  certificate  of  freedom,  written  on 
parchment,  forfeits  one  thousand  dollars. 

If  any  master,  in  that  State,  allows  his  slaves  to  sell  any 
wares  or  merchandise  out  of  the  incorporated  towns,  he  is 
liable  to  a  fine  of  from  fifty  to  five  hundred  dollars. 

In  Virginia,  any  person  who  buys  of  a  slave  any  article 
belonging  to  his  master,  forfeits  from  ten  to  fifty  dollars ; 
if  the  purchase  be  made  on  Sunday,  ten  dollars  more  are 
added  to  the  fine  for  each  article. 

This  enactment  is  evidently  made  to  prevent  a  slave  from 
obtaining  any  money,  or  holding  communication  with  free- 
men ;  a  particular  proviso  is  made  against  Sunday,  because 
.he  slave  has  usually  more  leisure  on  that  day.  It  is  to  be 
remembered  that  all  a  slave  has  belongs  to  his  master. 

To  carry  a  slave  out  of  North  Carolina,  or  conceal  him 
with  intent  to  carry  him  out,  is  punished  with  death. 

If  a  runaway  slave  die  in  prison,  before  he  or  she  can  be 
sold,  the  county  pays  the  sheriff  and  jailer ;  formerly  these 
officers  depended  on  the  life  and  marketableness  of  their 
prisoners  for  security ;  but  even  this  poor  motive  for  kind- 
ness is  now  taken  away.  If  ninety-nine  out  of  a  hundred 
die  in  prison,  they  will  be  heard  of  only  in  the  jailer's  bill. 
I  never  heard  or  read  of  an  inquest  upon  the  body  of  a 
slave  found  dead.  Under  the  term  "  runaway  slaves"  are 
included  many  free  colored  persons  taken  up  unjustly. 

Well  might  Jefferson  say,  "  I  tremble  for  my  country, 
when  I  reflect  that  God  is  just !" 

In  travelling  over  this  dreary  desert,  it  is  pleasant  to  arrive 
at  one  little  oasis  :  Louisiana  has  enacted  that  slaves  brought 
into  that  State  for  sale,  shall  forthwith  be  set  free ;  but  they 
must  be  sent  out  of  the  State. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  England  pursues  a  totally 
different  course  with  regard  to  allowing  slaves  to  communi- 
cate with  free  people.  Their  recent  laws  are  all  calculated 
to  make  it  easy  for  the  slave  to  obtain  a  fair  hearing  from 
people  who  have  no  interest  to  suppress  his  complaints. 
He  may  go  upon  any  plantation,  and  communicate  with  any 
person ;  and  whoever  tries  to  prevent  his  going  to  a  magis- 
trate is  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor. 


72  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

They  have  abolished  all  distinction  between  white  and 
colored  witnesses. 

The  law  expressly  stipulates  the  quality  and  quantity  of 
provisions. 

Inquest  is  held  upon  the  bodies  of  slaves  dying  suddenly, 
or  from  any  suspected  violence. 

Use  of  the  cart-whip  prohibited ;  and  no  female  to  be 
punished  except  by  order  of  the  court. 

Only  fifteen  lashes  allowed  as  a  punishment  to  men  for 
one  offence,  and  in  one  day  :  two  kinds  of  punishment  never 
allowed  for  one  offence. 

When  a  slave  is  punished,  two  competent  witnesses  must 
be  present. 

The  owner  is  obliged  to  keep  a  record  of  domestic  pun- 
ishments and  the  causes. 

Marriages  among  slaves  are  encouraged,  and  husband  and 
wife  are  not  allowed  to  be  sold  separately.  Children  under 
sixteen  years  old  cannot  be  separated  from  their  parents. 

Masters  illegally  punishing  their  slaves,  are  subject  to  fine, 
imprisonment,  and  loss  of  the  slave,  for  the  first  offence; 
for  the  second  offence,  sequestration  of  all  their  slaves. 

Free  colored  representatives  are  allowed  to  take  their 
seats  in  the  legislature,  and  share  all  the  other  privileges  of 
British  subjects. 

Yet  these  humane  laws,  so  carefully  framed  in  favor  of 
the  defenceless,  have  been  found  insufficient  to  protect  the 
slave.  Experience  proves,  what  reason  clearly  points  out, 
that  the  force  of  good  laws  must  be  weakened  by  the  very 
nature  of  this  unholy  relation.  Where  there  is  knowledge 
and  freedom  on  one  side,  and  ignorance  and  servitude  on 
the  other,  evasions  and  subterfuges  will  of  course  be  frequent. 
Hence  English  philanthropists  have  universally  come  to  the 
conclusion  that  nothing  effectual  can  be  done,  unless  slavery 
itself  be  destroyed. 

The  limits  of  this  work  compel  me  to  pass  by  many 
enactments  in  our  slaveholding  States,  which  would  throw 
still  more  light  on  this  dark  subject. 

I  have  laid  open  some  of  the  laws  which  do  actually  exist, 
and  are  constantly  enforced  in  this  free  country ;  and  know- 
ing  all  this,  and  still  more,  to  be  true,  I  blush  and  hang  my 
head,  whenever  I  hear  any  one  boast  of  our  "  glorious  in- 
stitutions." 

The  slaveholders  insist  that  their  humanity  is  so  great, 


IN    DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  73 

as  to  render  all  their  ferocious  laws  -perfectly  harmless. 
Are  the  laws  then  made  on  purpose  to  urge  tender-hearted 
masters  to  be  so  much  worse  than  they  really  desire  to  be  ? 
The  democrats  of  the  South  appear  to  be  less  scrupulous 
about  the  liberties  of  others,  than  the  Autocrat  of  the  Rus- 
sias ; — for,  when  Madame  de  Stael  told  the  Emperor  Alex- 
ander that  his  character  answered  instead  of  a  constitution 
for  his  country,  he  replied,  "  Then,  madam,  I  am  but  a 
lucky  accident."  How  much  more  emphatically  may  it  be 
said,  that  the  slave's  destiny  is  a  matter  of  chance !  Reader, 
would  you  trust  the  very  best  man  you  know,  with  your 
time,  your  interests,  your  family,  and  your  life,  unless  the 
contract  were  guarded  on  every  side  by  the  strong  arm  of 
the  law  ?  If  a  money-loving  neighbor  could  force  you  to  toil, 
and  could  gain  a  certain  number  of  dollars  for  every  hour 
of  your  labor,  how  much  rest  should  you  expect  to  have  ? 

It  is  utter  nonsense  to  say  that  generosity  of  disposition 
is  a  protection  against  tyranny,  where  all  the  power  is  on 
one  side.  It  may  be,  and  it  no  doubt  is  so,  in  particular 
instances ;  but  they  must  be  exceptions  to  the  general  rule. 

We  all  know  that  the  Southerners  have  a  high  sense  of 
what  the  world  calls  honor,  and  that  they  are  brave,  hos- 
pitable, and  generous  to  people  of  their  own  color ;  but  the 
more  we  respect  their  virtues,  the  more  cause  is  there  to 
lament  the  demoralizing  system,  which  produces  such  un- 
happy effects  on  all  who  come  within  its  baneful  influence. 
Most  of  them  may  be  as  kind  as  can  be  expected  of  human 
nature,  endowed  with  almost  unlimited  power  to  do  wrong ; 
and  some  of  them  may  be  even  more  benevolent  than  the 
warmest  friend  of  the  negro  would  dare  to  hope ;  but  while 
we  admit  all  this,  we  must  not  forget  that  there  is  in  every 
community  a  class  of  men,  who  will  not  be  any  better  than 
the  laws  compel  them  to  be. 

Captain  Riley,  in  his  Narrative,  says :  "  Strange  as  it 
may  seem  to  the  philanthropist,  my  free  and  proud-spirited 
countrymen  still  hold  a  million  and  a  half*  of  human  beings 
in  the  most  cruel  bonds  of  slavery ;  who  are  kept  at  hard 
labor,  and  smarting  dnder  the  lash  of  inhuman  mercenary 
drivers ;  in  many  instances  enduring  the  miseries  of  hunger, 
thirst,  imprisonment,  cold,  nakedness,  and  even  tortures. 
This  is  no  picture  of  the  imagination.  For  the  honor  of 

*  There  are  now  over  two  million. 

7 


74  COMPARATIVE    VIEW    OF    SLAVERY, 

human  nature,  I  wish  likenesses  were  nowhere  to  be  found ! 
I  myself  have  witnessed  such  scenes  in  different  parts  of  my 
own  country ;  and  the  bare  recollection  of  them  now  chills 
my  blood  with  horror." 

When  the  slave-owners  talk  of  their  gentleness  and  com- 
passion, they  are  witnesses  in  their  own  favor,  and  have 
strong  motives  for  showing  the  fairest  side.  But  what  do 
the  laws  themselves  imply  ?  Are  enactments  ever  made 
against  exigencies  which  do  not  exist  ?  If  negroes  have  never 
been  scalded,  burned,  mutilated,  &c.,  why  are  such  crimes 
forbidden  by  an  express  law,  with  the  marvellous  proviso, 
except  said  slave  die  of  "moderate  punishment !"  If  a  law 
sanctioning  whipping  to  any  extent,  incarceration  at  the 
discretion  of  the  master,  and  the  body  loaded  with  irons,  is 
called  a  restraining  law,  let  me  ask  what  crimes  must  have 
been  committed,  to  require  prohibition,  where  so  much  is 
allowed  1  The  law  which  declares  that  slaves  shall  be  com- 
pelled to  labor  only  fourteen  or  fifteen  hours  a  day,  has  the 
following  preamble :  "  Whereas  many  owners  of  slaves, 
managers,  &c.  do  confine  them  so  closely  to  hard  labor  that 
they  have  not  sufficient  time  for  natural  rest,"  &c.  Mr. 
Pinckney,  in  a  public  argument,  speaking  of  slaves  mur- 
dered by  severe  treatment,  says  :  "  The  frequency  of  the 
crime  is  no  doubt  owing  to  the  nature  of  the  punishment." 
The  reader  will  observe  that  I  carefull)r  refrain  from  quoting 
the  representations  of  party  spirit,  and  refer  to  facts  only 
for  evidence. 

Where  the  laws  are  made  by  the  people,  a  majority  of 
course  approve  them  ;  else  they  would  soon  be  changed. 
It  must  therefore  in  candor  be  admitted,  that  the  laws  of  a 
State  speak  the  prevailing  sentiments  of  the  inhabitants. 

Judging  by  this  rule,  what  inference  must  be  drawn  from 
the  facts  stated  above  ?  "  At  Sparta,  the  freeman  is  the 
freest  of  all  men,  and  the  slave  is  the  greatest  of  slaves." 

Our  republic  is  a  perfect  Pandora's  box  to  the  negro, 
only  there  is  no  hope  at  the  bottom.  The  wretchedness  of 
his  fate  is  not  a  little  increased  by  being  a  constant  witness 
of  the  unbounded  freedom  enjoyed  by  others :  the  slave's 
labor  must  necessarily  be  like  the  labor  of  Sisiphus ;  and 
here  the  torments  of  Tantalus  are  added. 

Slavery  is  so  inconsistent  with  free  institutions,  and  the 
spirit  of  liberty  is  so  contagious  under  such  institutions,  that 
the  system  must  either  be  given  up,  or  sustained  by  laws 


IN    DIFFERENT    AGES    AND    NATIONS.  75 

outrageously  severe ;  hence  we  find  that  our  slave  laws 
have  each  year  been  growing  more  harsh  than  those  of  any 
other  nation. 

Shall  I  be  told  that  all  these  regulations  are  necessary 
for  the  white  man's  safety  ?  What  then,  let  me  indignantly 
ask,  what  must  the  system  be  that  requires  to  be  supported  by 
such  unnatural,  such  tyrannical  means?  The  very  apology 
pronounces  the  condemnation  of  slavery — for  it  proves  that 
it  cannot  exist  without  producing  boundless  misery  to  the 
oppressed,  and  perpetual  terror  to  the  oppressor. 

In-  our  fourth  of  July  orations,  we  are  much  in  the  habit 
of  talking  about  the  tyranny  of  England !  and  there  is  no 
doubt  that  broad  and  deep  stains-  do  rest  upon  her  history. 
But  there  is  a  vulgar  proverb  that  "  those  who  live  in  glass 
houses  should  not  throw  stones."  In  judging  of  national, 
as  well  as  individual  wrong,  it  is  fair  to  consider  the  amount 
of  temptation.  England  has  had  power,  more  extensive  and 
permanent  than  any  nation  since  the  decline  of  Rome :  the 
negroes  and  the  Indians  are  the  only  people  who  have  been 
dependant  on  our  justice  and  generosity — and  how  have  we 
treated  them  ? 

It  is  a  favorite  argument  that  we  are  not  to  blame  for 
slavery,  because  the  British  engrafted  it  upon  us,  while  we 
were  colonies.  But  did  we  not  take  the  liberty  to  change 
English  laws  and  customs,  when  they  did  not  suit  us  ?  Why 
not  put  away  this,  as  well  as  other  evils  of  much  less  con- 
sequence 1  It  could  have  been  done  easily,  at  the  time  of 
our  confederation ;  it  can  be  done  now. — Have  not  other 
nations  been  making  alterations  for  the  better,  on  this  very 
subject,  since  we  became  independent  ?  Is  not  England 
trying  with  all  her  might  to  atone  for  the  wrong  she  has 
done  ?  Does  not  the  constitution  of  the  United  States,  and 
the  constitution  of  each  individual  State,  make  provision  for 
such  changes  as  shall  tend  to  the  public  good  ? 

The  plain  truth  is,  the  continuation  of  this  system  is  a  sin; 
and  the  sin  rests  upon  us :  It  has  been  eloquently  said  that 
"  by  this  excuse,  we  try  to  throw  the  blame  upon  our  ances- 
tors, and  leave  repentance  to  posterity." 


76 


FREE    LABOR    AND    ST.'.VE 


CHAPTER    III. 

FREE  LABOR  AND  SLAVE  LABOR.— POSSIBILITY  OF  SAFE 
EMANCIPATION. 


Wo  unto  him  that  useth  his  neighbor's  service  without  wages,  and  giveth  i 
not  for  his  work.— Jeremiah  xxii,  13. 

Who  can  reflect,  unmoved,  upon  the  round 
Of  smooth  and  solemnized  complacences, 
By  which,  on  Christian  lands,  from  age  to  age, 
Profession  mocks  performance.    Earth  is  sick, 
And  Heaven  is  weary,  of  the  hollow  words, 
Which  states  and  kingdoms  utter  wheu  they  talk 
Of  truth  and  justice. 

WOBDSWORTH. 


POLITICAL  economists  found  their  systems  on  those  broad 
and  general  principles,  the  application  of  which  has  been 
proved  by  reason  and  experience  to  produce  the  greatest 
possible  happiness  to  the  greatest  number  of  people.  All 
writers  of  this  class,  I  believe  without  exception,  prefer  free 
labor  to  slave  labor. 

Indeed  a  very  brief  glance  will  show  that  slavery  is  in- 
consistent with  economy,  whether  domestic  or  political. 

The  slave  is  bought,  sometimes  at  a  very  high  price  ;  in 
free  labor  there  is  no  such  investment  of  capital.  When  the 
slave  is  ill,  a  physician  must  be  paid  by  the  owner ;  the  free 
laborer  defrays  his  own  expenses.  The  children  of  the^slave 
must  be  supported  by  his  master  ;  the  free  man  maintains 
his  own.  The  slave  is  to  be  taken  care  of  in  his  old  age, 
which  his  previous  habits  render  peculiarly  helpless ;  the 
free  laborer  is  hired  when  he  is  wanted,  and  then  returns  to 
his  home.  The  slave  does  not  care  how  slowly  or  care- 
lessly  he  works ;  it  is  the  free  man's  interest  to  do  his  busi- 
ness well  and  quickly.  The  slave  is  indifferent  how  many 
tools  he  spoils ;  the  free  man  has  a  motive  to  be  careful. 
The  slave's  clothing  is  indeed  very  cheap,  but  it  is  of  no  con- 
sequence to  him  how  fast  it  is  destroyed — his  master  must 
keep  him  covered,  and  that  is  all  he  is  likely  to  do  ;  the 
hired  laborer  pays  more  for  his  garments,  but  makes  them 


FREE  LABOR  AND  SLAVE  LABOR.          77 

last  three  times  as  long.  The  free  man  will  be  honest  for 
reputation's  sake  ;  but  reputation  will  make  the  slave  none 
the  richer,  nor  invest  him  with  any  of  the  privileges  of  a  hu- 
man being — while  his  poverty  and  sense  of  wrong  both  urge 
him  to  steal  from  his  master.  A  salary  must  be  paid  to  an 
overseer  to  compel  the  slave  to  work ;  the  free  man  is  im- 
pelled by  the  desire  of  increasing  the  comforts  of  himself  and 
family.  Two  hired  laborers  will  perform  as  much  work  as 
three  slaves ;  by  some  it  is  supposed  to  be  a  more  correct 
estimate  that  slaves  perform  only  Jia.Jf  as  much  labor  as  the 
same  number  of  free  laborers.  Finally,  where  slaves  are 
employed,  manual  industry  is  a  degradation  to  white  people, 
and  indolence  becomes  the  prevailing  characteristic. 

Slave-owners  have  indeed  frequently  shown  great  adroit- 
ness in  defending  this  bad  system ;  but,  with  few  exceptions, 
they  base  their  arguments  upon  the  necessity  of  continuing 
slavery  because  it  is  already  begun.  Many  of  them  have 
openly  acknowledged  that  it  was  highly  injurious  to  the  pros- 
perity of  the  State. 

The  Hon.  Henry  Clay,  in  his  address  before  the  Coloni- 
zation Society  of  Kentucky,  has  given  a  view  of  the  causes 
affecting,  and  likely  to  affect,  slavery  in  this  country,  which 
is  very  remarkable  for  its  completeness,  its  distinctness,  and 
its  brevity.  The  following  sentences  are  quoted  from  this 
address :  "  As  a  mere  laborer,  the  slave  feels  that  he  toils 
for  his  master,  and  not  for  himself;  that  the  laws  do  not 
recognise  his  capacity  to  acquire  and  hold  property,  which 
depends  altogether  upon  the  pleasure  of  his  proprietor,  and 
that  all  the  fruits  of  his  exertions  are  reaped  by  others.  He 
knows  that,  whether  sick  or  well,  in  times  of  scarcity  or 
abundance,  his  master  is  bound  to  provide  for  him  by  the  all- 
powerful  influence  of  self-interest.  He  is  generally,  there- 
fore, indifferent  to  the  adverse  or  prosperous  fortunes  of  his 
master,  being  contented  if  he  can  escape  his  displeasure  or 
chastisement,  by  a  careless  and  slovenly  performance  of  his 
duties. 

"  This  is  the  state  of  the  relation  between  master  and  slave, 
prescribed  by  the  law  of  its  nature,  and  founded  in  the  rea- 
son of  things.  There  are  undoubtedly  many  exceptions,  in 
which  the  slave  dedicates  himself  to  his  master  with  a  zeal- 
ous and  generous  devotion,  and  the  master  to  the  slave  with 
a  parental  and  affectionate  attachment.  But  it  is  my  pur- 
pose to  speak  of  the  general  state  of  this  unfortunate  relation. 

7* 


78         FREE  LABOR  AND  SLAVE  LABOR. 

"  That  labor  is  best,  in  which  the  laborer  knows  that  he 
will  derive  the  profits  of  his  industry,  that  his  employment 
depends  upon  his  diligence,  and  his  reward  upon  this  assi 
duity.  He  then  has  every  motive  to  excite  him  to  exertion, 
and  to  animate  him  in  perseverance.  He  knows  that  if  he 
is  treated  badly,  he  can  exchange  his  employer  for  one  who 
will  better  estimate  his  service ;  and  that  whatever  he  earns 
is  his,  to  be  distributed  by  himself  as  he  pleases,  among  his 
wife  and  children,  and  friends,  or  enjoyed  by  himself.  In 
a  word,  he  feels  that  he  is  a  free  agent,  with  rights,  and  priv- 
ileges, and  sensibilities. 

"  Wherever  the  option  exists  to  employ,  at  an  equal  hire, 
free  or  slave  labor,  the  former  will  be  decidedly  preferred, 
for  the  reasons  already  assigned.  It  is  more  capable,  more 
diligent,  more  faithful,  and  in  every  respect  more  worthy  of 
confidence. 

"  It  is  believed  that  nowhere  in  the  farming  portion  of  the 
United  States  would  slave  labor  be  generally  employed,  if 
the  proprietor  were  not  tempted  to  raise  slaves  by  the  high 
price  of  the  Southern  market,  which  keeps  it  up  in  his  own." 

Speaking  of  an  attempt  more  than  thirty-five  years  ago, 
to  adopt  gradual  emancipation  in  Kentucky,  Mr.  Clay  says : 
"  We  were  overpowered  by  numbers,  and  submitted  to  the 
decision  of  the  majority,  with  the  grace  which  the  minority, 
in  a  republic,  should  ever  yield  to  such  a  decision.  I  have 
nevertheless  never  ceased,  and  never  shall  cease,  to  regret 
a  decision,  the  effects  of  which  have  been,  to  place  us  in  the 
rear  of  our  neighbors,  who  are  exempt  from  slavery,  in  the 
state  of  agriculture,  the  progress  of  manufactures,  the  ad- 
vance of  improvement,  and  the  general  prosperity  of  society." 

Mr.  Appleton,  in  his  reply  to  Mr.  McDuffie  in  the  winter 
of  1832, — a  speech  distinguished  for  its  good  temper  and 
sound  practical  sense, — says  :  "  I  do  not  think  the  gentle- 
man from  South  Carolina  has  overrated  the  money  price  of 
New-England  labor  at  fifty  cents ;  but  most  of  the  labor  is 
performed  by  the  owners  of  the  soil.  It  is  great  industry 
alone,  which  makes  New-England  prosperous.  The  cir- 
cumstance that  with  this  cheap  slave  labor,  the  South  is  com- 
plaining of  suffering,  while  the  North  is  content  and  pros- 
perous with  dear  free  labor,  is  a  striking  fact  and  'deserves  a 
careful  and  thorough  examination.  The  experience  of  all 
ages  and  nations  proves  that  high  wages  are  the  most  pow. 
erful  stimulus  to  exertion,  and  the  best  means  of  attaching 


FREE  LABOR  AND  SLAVE  LABOR.         79 

the  people  to  the  institutions  under  which  they  live.  It  is  ap- 
parent that  this  political  effect  upon  the  character  of  society 
cannot  have  any  action  upon  slaves.  Having  no  choice  or 
volition,  there  is  nothing  for  stimulus  to  act  upon  ;  they  are 
in  fact  no  part  of  society.  So  that,  in  the  language  of  po- 
litical economy,  they  are,  like  machinery,  merely  capital ; 
and  the  productions  of  their  labor  consists  wholly  of  profits 
of  capital.  But  it  is  not  perceived  how  the  tariff  can  lessen 
the  value  of  the  productions  of  their  labor,  in  comparison 
with  that  of  the  other  States,  New- York  and  Virginia  both 
produce  wheat ;  New- York  with  dear  labor  is  content,  and 
Virginia  with  cheap  labor  is  dissatisfied. 

"  What  is  the  occupation  of  the  white  population  of  the 
planting  States  ?  I  am  at  a  loss  to  know  how  this  popula- 
tion is  employed.  We  hear  of  no  products  of  these  States, 
but  those  produced  by  slave  labor.  It  is  clear  the  white 
population  cannot  be  employed  in  raising  cotton  or  tobacco, 
because  in  doing  so  they  can  earn  but  twelve  and  a  half 
cents  per  day,  since  the  same  quantity  of  labor  performed 
by  a  slave  is  worth  no  more.  I  am  told  also  that  the  wages 
of  overseers,  mechanics,  &c.  are  higher  than  the  white  labor 
of  the  North ;  and  it  is  well  known  that  many  mechanics  go 
from  the  North  to  the  South,  to  get  employment  during  the 
winter.  These  facts  suggest  the  inquiry  whether  this  cheap 
slave  labor  does  not  paralyze  the  industry  of  the  whites  ? 
Whether  idleness  is  not  the  greatest  of  their  evils?" 

During  the  famous  debate  in  the  Virginia  Legislature,  iu 
the  winter  of  1832,  Mr.  Brodnax  made  the  following  remark : 
"  That  slavery  in  Virginia  is  an  evil,  and  a  transcendent 
evil,  it  would  be  more  than  idle  for  any  human  being  to  doubt 
or  deny.  It  is  a  mildew  which  has  blighted  every  region  it 
has  touched,  from  the  creation  of  the  world.  Illustrations 
from  the  history  of  other  countries  and  other  times  might  be 
instructive  and  profitable,  had  we  the  time  to  review  them ; 
but  we  have  evidence  tending  to  the  same  conviction  nearer 
at  hand  and  accessible  to  daily  observation,  in  the  short  his- 
tories of  the  different  States  of  this  great  confederacy,  which 
are  impressive  in  their  admonitions  and  conclusive  in  their 
character." 

During  the  same  session,  Mr.  Faulkner  of  Virginia  said : 
**  Sir,  I  am  gratified  to  perceive  that  no  gentleman  has  yet 
risen  in  this  hall,  the  avowed  advocate  of  slavery.  The  day 
has  gone  by,  when  such  a  voice  could  be  listened  to  with 


FREE    LABOR    AND    SLAVE    LABOR*. 

patience,  err  even  forbearance.  I  even  regret,  sir,  that  we? 
should  find  one  amongst  us,  who  enters  the  lists  as  its  apol- 
ogist, except  on  the  ground  of  uncontrolable  necessity.  If 
there  be  one,  who  concurs  with  the  gentleman  from  Bruns- 
wick (Mr.  Gholson)  in  the  harmless  character  of  this  insti- 
tution, let  me  request  him  to  compare  the  condition  of  the 
slaveholding  portion  of  this  Commonwealth — barren,  deso- 
late, and  seared  as  it  were  by  the  avenging  hand  of  Heaven, 
— with  the  descriptions  which  we  have  of  this 'same  country 
from  those  who  first  broke  its  virgin  soil.  To  what  is  this 
change  ascribable?  Alone  to  the  withering  and  blasting 
effects  of  slavery.  If  this  does  not  satisfy  him,  let  me  re- 
quest him  to  extend  his  travels  to  the  Northern  States  of  this 
Union, — and  beg  him  to  contrast  the  happiness  and  content- 
ment which  prevails  throughout  the  country — the  busy  and 
cheerful  sounds  of  industry — the  rapid  and  swelling  growth 
of  their  population — their  means  and  institutions  of  education 
— their  skill  and  proficiency  in  the  useful  arts — their  enter- 
prise and  public  spirit — the  monuments  of  their  commercial 
and  manufacturing  industry ; — and,  above  all,  their  devoted 
attachment  to  the  government  from  which  they  derive  their 
protection,  with  the  division,  discontent,  indolence,  and  pov- 
erty of  the  Southern  country.  To  what,  sir,  is  all  this  as- 
cribable? To  that  vice  in  the  organization  of  society,  by 
which  one  half  of  its  inhabitants  are  arrayed  in  interest  and 
feeling  against  the  other  half — to  that  unfortunate  state  of 
society  in  which  freemen  regard  labor  as  disgraceful — and 
slaves  shrink  from  it  as  a  burden  tyranically  imposed  upon 
them — to  that  condition  of  things,  in  which  half  a  million  of 
your  population  can  feel  no  sympathy  with  the  society  in 
the  prosperity  of  which  they  are  forbidden  to  participate, 
and  no  attachment  to  a  government  at  whose  hands  they 
receive  nothing  but  injustice. 

"  If  this  should  not  be  sufficient,  and  the  curious  and  in- 
credulous inquirer  should  suggest  that  the  contrast  which 
has  been  adverted  to,  and  is  so  manifest,  might  be  traced  to 
a  difference  of  climate,  or  other  causes  distinct  from  slavery 
itself,  permit  me  to  refer  him  to  the  two  States  of  Kentucky 
arid  Ohio.  No  difference  of  soil — no  diversity  of  climate — 
no  diversity  in  the  original  settlement  of  those  two  States, 
can  account  for  the  remarkable  disproportion  in  their  national 
advancement.  Separated  by  a  river  alone,  they  seem  to  have 
been  purposely  and  providentially  designed  to  exhibit  in  their 


FREE  LABOR  AND  SLAVE  LABOR.          81 

future  histories  the  difference,  which  necessarily  resuHs  from 
a  country  free  from,  and  a  country  afflicted  with,  the  curse 
of  slavery.  The  same  may  be  said  of  the  two  States  of 
Missouri  and  Illinois. 

"  Slavery,  it  is  admitted,  is  an  evil — it  is  an  institution 
which  presses  heavily  against  the  best  interests  of  the  State. 
It  banishes  free  white  labor — it  exterminates  the  mechanic — 
the  artisan — the  manufacturer.  It  deprives  them  of  occu- 
pation. It  deprives  them  of  bread.  It  converts  the  en- 
ergy of  a  community  into  indolence — its  power  into  imbe- 
cility— its  efficiency  into  weakness.  Sir,  being  thus  injuri- 
ous, have  we  not  a  right  to  demand  its  extermination  !  Shall 
society  suffer,  that  the  slaveholder  may  continue  to  gather 
his  vigintial  crop  of  human  flesh  ?  What  is  his  mere  pe- 
cuniary claim,  compared  with  the  great  interests  of  the  com- 
mon weal?  Must  the  country  languish  and  die,  that  the 
slaveholder  may  flourish?  Shall  all  interest  be  subservient 
to  one  ? — all  rights  subordinate  to  those  of  the  slaveholder  ? 
Has  not  the  mechanic — have  not  the  middle  classes  their 
rights? — rights  incompatible  with  the  existence  of  slavery  ?" 

Sutcliff,  in  his  Travels  in  North  America,  says  :  "  A 
person  not  conversant  with  these  things  would  naturally 
think  that  where  families  employ  a  number  of  slaves,  every 
thing  about  their  houses,  gardens,  and  plantations,  would  be 
kept  in  the  best  order.  But  the  reverse  of  this  is  generally 
the  case.  I  was  sometimes  tempted  to  think  that  the  more 
slaves  there  were  employed,  the  more  disorder  appeared. 
I  am  persuaded  that  one  or  two  hired  servants,  in  a  well- 
regulated  family,  would  preserve  more  neatness,  order,  and 
comfort,  than  treble  the  number  of  slaves. 

"  There  is  a  very  striking  contrast  between  the  appear- 
ance of  the  horses  or  teams  in  Pennsylvania,  and  those  in 
the  Southern  States,  where  slaves  are  kept.  In  Pennsylvania 
we  meet  with  great  numbers  of  wagons,  drawn  by  four  or 
more  fine  fat  horses,  the  carriages  firm  and  well  made,  and 
covered  with  stout  good  linen,  bleached  almost  white  ;  and 
it  is  not  uncommon  to  see  ten  or  fifteen  together,  travelling 
cheerfully  along  the  road,  the  driver  riding  on  one  of  his 
horses.  Many  of  these  come  more  than  three  hundred 
miles  to  Philadelphia,  from  the  Ohio,  Pittsburg,  and  other 
places ;  and  I  have  been  told  by  a  respectable  friend,  a 
native  of  Philadelphia,  that  more  than  one  thousand  covered 
carriages  frequently  come  to  Philadelphia  market." 


02         FREE  LABOR  AND  SLAVE  LAFOK. 

"  The  appearance  of  things  in  the  slave  States  is  quite  the 
reverse  of  this.  We  sometimes  meet  a  ragged  black  boy 
or  girl  driving  a  team,  consisting  of  a  lean  cow  or  a  mule, 
sometimes  a  lean  bull,  or  an  ox  and  a  mule  ;  and  I  have  seen 
a  mule,  a  bull,  and  a  cow,  each  miserable  in  its  appearance, 
composing  one  team,  with  a  half-naked  black  slave  or  two, 
riding  or  driving,  as  occasion  suited.  The  carriage  or  \vagon, 
if  it  maybe  called  such,  appeared  in  as  wretched  a  condition 
as  the  team  and  its  driver.  Sometimes  a  couple  of  horses, 
mules,  or  cows,  &c.,  would  be  dragging  a  hogshead  of  tobacco, 
with  a  pivot,  or  axle,  driven  into  each  end  of  the  hogshead, 
and  something  like  a  shaft  attached,  by  which  it  was  drawn, 
or  rolled  along  the  road.  I  have  seen  two  oxen  and  two 
slaves  pretty  fully  employed  in  getting  along  a  single  hogs- 
head  ;  and  some  of  these  corne  from  a  great  distance  inland. " 

The  inhabitants  of  free  States  are  often  told  that  they  can- 
not argue  fairly  upon  the  subject  of  slavery  because  they 
know  nothing  about  its  actual  operation  ;  and  any  expression 
of  their  opinions  and  feelings  with  regard  to  the  system,  is 
attributed  to  ignorant  enthusiasm,  fanatical  benevolence,  or 
a  wicked1  intention  to  do  mischief^ 

But  Mr.  Clay,  Mr.  Brodnax,  and  Mr.  Faulkner,  belong 
to  slaveholding  States  ;  and  the  two  former,  if  I  mistake 
not,  are  slave-owners.  They  surely  are  qualified  to  judge 
of  the  system ;  and  I  might  fill  ten  pages  with  other  quota- 
tions from  southern  writers  and  speakers,  who  acknowledge 
that  slavery  is  a  great  evil.  There  are  zealous  partisans 
indeed,  who  defend  the  system-  strenuously,  and  some  of 
them  very  eloquently.  Thus,  Mr.  Hayne,  in  his-  reply  to 
Mr.  Webster,  denied  that  the  south  suffered  in  consequence 
of  slavery ;  he  maintained  that  the  slaveholding  States  were 
prosperous,  and  the  principal  cause  of  all  the  prosperity  in 
the  Union.  He  laughed  at  the  idea  of  any  danger,  however 
distant,  from  an  overgrown  slave  population,  and  supported 
the  position  by  the  fact  that  slaves  had  always  been  kept  in 
entire  subjection  in  the  British  West  Indies,  where  the  white 
population  is  less  than  ten  per  cent,  of  the  whole.  But  the 
distinguished  gentleman  from  South  Carolina  did  not  mention 
that  the  peace  establishment  of  the  British  West  Indies  costs 
England  two  million  pounds  annually  !  Yet  such  is  the  fact. 
This  system  is  so  closely  entwined  with  the  apparent  inten. 
ests  and  convenience  of  individuals,  that  it  will  never  want 
for  able  defenders)  so  long  as  it  exists.  But  I  believe  I  do, 


FREE  LABOR  AND  SLAVE  LABOR.         83 

not  misrepresent  the  truth,  when  I  say  the  prevailing  opinion 
at  the  South  is,  that  it  would  have  been  much  better  for 
those  States,  and  for  the  country  in  general,  if  slavery  had 
never  been  introduced. 

Miss  Martineau,  in  her  most  admirable  little  book  on 
Demerara,  says :  "  Labor  is  the  product  of  mind  as  much 
as  of  body ;  and  to  secure  that  product,  we  must  sway  the 
mind  by  the  natural  means — by  motives.  Laboring  against 
self-interest  is  what  nobody  ought  to  expect  of  white  men — 
much  less  of  slaves.  Of  course  every  man,  woman  and 
child,  would  rather  play  for  nothing  than  work  for  nothing. 

"  It  is  the  mind,  which  gives  sight  to  the  eye,  and  hearing 
to  the  ear,  and  strength  to  the  limbs ;  and  the  mind  cannot 
be  purchased.  Where  a  man  is  allowed  the  possession  of 
himself,  the  purchaser  of  his  labor  is  benefitted  by  the  vigor 
of  his  mind  through  the  service  of  his  limbs :  where  man  is 
made  the  possession  of  another,  the  possessor  loses  at  once 
and  for  ever  all  that  is  most  valuable  in  that  for  which  he 
has  paid  the  price  of  crime.  He  becomes  the  owner  of  that 
which  only  differs  from  an  idiot  in  being  less  easily  drilled 
into  habits,  and  more  capable  of  effectual  revenge. 

"  Cattle  are  fixed  capital,  and  so  are  slaves :  But  slaves 
differ  from  cattle  on  the  one  hand,  in  yielding  (from  internal 
opposition)  a  less  return  for  their  maintenance  ;  and  from 
free  laborers  on  the  other  hand,  in  not  being  acted  upon 
by  the  inducements  which  stimulate  production  as  an  effort 
of  mind  as  well  as  of  body.  In  all  three  cases  the  labor 
is  purchased.  In  free  laborers  and  cattle,  all  the  faculties 
work  together,  and  to  advantage;  in  the  slave  they  are 
opposed  ;  and  therefore  he  is,  so  far  as  the  amount  of  labor 
is  concerned,  the  least  valuable  of  the  three.  The  negroes 
can  invent  and  improve — witness  their  ingenuity  in  their 
dwellings,  and  their  skill  in  certain  of  their  sports  ;  but  their 
masters  will  never  possess  their  faculties,  though  they  have 
purchased  their  limbs.  Our  true  policy  would  be  to  divide 
the  work  of  the  slave  between  the  ox  and  the  hired  laborer; 
we  should  get  more  out  of  the  sinews  of  the  one  and  the  soul 
of  the  other,  than  the  produce  of  double  the  number  of  slaves." 

As  a  matter  of  humanity,  let  it  be  remembered  that  men 
having  more  reason  than  brutes,  must  be  treated  with  much 
greater  severity,  in  order  to  keep  them  in  a  state  of  abject 
submission. 

It  seems  unnecessary  to  say  that  what  is  unjust  and  unmer- 


84  POSSIBILITY    OP    SAFE    EMANCIPATION. 

ciful,  can  never  be  expedient ;  yet  men  often  write,  talk,  and 
act,  as  if  they  either  forgot  this  truth,  or  doubted  it.  There 
is  genuine  wisdom  in  the  following  remark,  extracted  from  the 
petition  of  Cambridge  University  to  the  Parliament  of  Eng- 
land, on  the  subject  of  slavery  :  "  A  firm  belief  in  the  Prov- 
idence of  a  benevolent  Creator  assures  us  that  no  system, 
founded  on  the  oppression  of  one  part  of  mankind,  can  be 
beneficial  to  another." 

But  the  tolerator  of  slavery  will  say,  "  No  doubt  the  sys- 
tem is  an  evil ;  but  we  are  not  to  blame  for  it ;  we  received 
it  from  our  English  ancestors.  It  is  a  lamentable  necessity; 
—we  cannot  do  it  away  if  we  would  : — insurrections  would 
be  the  inevitable  result  of  any  attempt  to  remove  it" — and 
having  quieted  their  consciences  by  the  use  of  the  word  lam- 
entable, they  think  no  more  upon  the  subject. 

These  assertions  have  been  so  often,  and  so  dogmatically 
repeated,  that  many  truly  kind-hearted  people  have  believed 
there  was  some  truth  in  them.  I  myself,  (may  God  forgive 
me  for  it !)  have  often,  in  thoughtless  ignorance,  made  the 
same  remarks. 

An  impartial  and  careful  examination  has  led  me  to  the 
conviction  that  slavery  causes  insurrections,  while  emanci- 
pation prevents  them. 

The  grand  argument  of  the  slaveholder  is  that  sudden 
freedom  occasioned  the  horrible  massacres  of  St.  Domingo. 
— If  a  word  is  said  in  favor  of  abolition,  he  shakes  his  head, 
and  points  a  warning  finger  to  St.  Domingo  !  But  it  is  a  re- 
markable fact  that  this  same  vilified  island  furnishes  a  strong 
argument  against  the  lamentable  necessity  of  slavery.  In 
the  first  place,  there  was  a  bloody  civil  war  there  before  the 
act  of  emancipation  was  passed  ;  in  the  second  place  enfran- 
chisement produced  the  most  blessed  effects :  in  the  third 
place,  no  difficulties  whatever  arose,  until  Bonaparte  made 
his  atrocious  attempt  to  restore  slavery  in  the  island. 

Colonel  Malenfant,  a  slave  proprietor,  resident  in  St.  Do- 
mingo at  the  time,  thus  describes  the  effect  of  sudden  enfran- 
chisement, in  his  Historical  and  Political  Memoir  of  the  Col- 
onies : 

"  After  this  public  act  of  emancipation,  the  negroes  re- 
mained quiet  both  in  the  South  and  in  the  West,  and  they 
continued  to  work  upon  all  the  plantations.  There  were  es- 
tates which  had  neither  owners  nor  managers  resident  upon 
them,  yet  upon  these  estates,  though  abandoned,  the  negroes 


POSSIBILITY    OF   SAFE    EMANCIPATION.  85 

continued  their  labors  where  there  were  any,  even  inferior 
agents,  to  guide  them  ;  and  on  those  estates  where  no  white 
men  were  left  to  direct  them,  they  betook  themselves  to  the 
planting  of  provisions  ;  but  upon  all  the  plantations  where 
the  whites  resided,  the  blacks  continued  to  labor  as  quietly 
as  before."  Colonel  Malenfant  says,  that  when  many  of  his 
neighbors,  proprietors  or  managers,  were  in  prison,  the  ne- 
groes of  their  plantations  came  to  him  to  beg  him  to  direct 
them  in  their  work. 

He  adds,  "  If  you  will  take  care  not  to  talk  to  them  of  the 
restoration  of  slavery,  but  to  talk  to  them  of  freedom,  you 
may  with  this  word  chain  them  down  to  their  labor.  How  did 
Toussaint  succeed  ? — rHow  did  I  succeed  before  his  time  in 
the  plain  of  the  Culde-Sae  on  the  plantation  Gouraud,  during 
more  than  eight  months  after  liberty  had  been  granted  to 
the  slaves?  Let  those  who  knew  me  at  that  time,  let  the 
blacks  themselves,  be  asked :  they  will  all  reply  that  not  a 
single  negro  upon  that  plantation,  consisting  of  more  than 
four  hundred  and  fifty  laborers,  refused  to  work  :  and  yet 
this  plantation  was  thought  to  be  under  the  worst  discipline 
and  the  slaves  the  most  idle  of  any  in  the  plain.  I  inspired 
the  same  activity  into  three  other  plantations  of  which  I  had 
the  management.  If  all  the  negroes  had  come  from  Africa 
within  six  months,  if  they  had  the  love  of  independence  that 
the  Indians  have,  I  should  own  that  force  must  be  employed  ; 
but  ninety-nine  out  of  a  hundred  of  the  blacks  are  aware 
that  without  labor  they  cannot  procure  the  things  that  are 
necessary  for  them ;  that  there  is  no  other  method  of  satis- 
fying their  wants  and  their  tastes.  They  know  that  they 
must  work,  they  wish  to  do  so,  and  they  will  do  so." 

Such  was  the  conduct  of  the  negroes  for  the  first  nine 
months  after  their  liberation,  or  up  to  the  middle  of  1794. 
In  the  latter  part  of  1796,  Malenfant  says,  "the  colony 
was  flourishing  under  Toussaint,  the  whites  lived  happily 
and  in  peace  upon  their  estates,  and  the  negroes  continued 
to  work  for  them."  General  Lecroix,  who  published  his 
"  Memoirs  for  a  History  of  St.  Domingo"  in  1819,  says, 
that  in  1797  the  most  wonderful  progress  had  been  made  in 
agriculture.  "  The  Colony,"  says  he,  "  marched  as  by  en- 
chantment towards  its  ancient  splendor  :  cultivation  pros- 
pered ;  every  day  produced  perceptible  proof  of  its  progress." 
General  Vincent,*  who  was  a  general  of  brigade  of  artillery 
*  Clarkson's  Thoughts,  p.  2. 

8 


86  POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION. 

in  St.  Domingo  and  a  proprietor  of  estates  in  the  island,  was 
sent  by  Toussaint  to  Paris  in  1801  to  lay  before  the  Direc- 
tory the  new  constitution  which  had  been  agreed  upon  in 
St.  Domingo.  He  arrived  in  France  just  at  the  moment  of 
the  peace  of  Amiens,  and  found  that  Bonaparte  was  prepar- 
ing an  armament  for  the  purpose  of  restoring  slavery  in  St. 
Domingo.  He  remonstrated  against  the  expedition  ;  he  sta- 
ted that  it  was  totally  unnecessary  and  therefore  criminal, 
for  every  thing  was  going  on  well  in  St.  Domingo.  The 
proprietors  were  in  peaceable  possession  of  their  estates  ;  cul- 
tivation was  making  rapid  progress ;  the  blacks  were  indus- 
trious and  beyond  example  happy.  He  conjured  him,  there- 
fore, not  to  reverse  this  beautiful  state  of  things ;  but  his 
efforts  were  ineffectual,  and  the  expedition  arrived  upon  the 
shores  of  St.  Domingo.  At  length,  however,  the  French 
were  driven  from  the  island.  Till  that  time  the  planters  had 
retained  their  property,  and  then  it  was,  and  not  till  then, 
that  they  lost  their  all.  In  1804,  Dessalines  was  proclaimed 
Emperor;  in  process  of  time  a  great  part  of  the  black  troops 
were  disbanded,  and  returned  to  cultivation  again.  From 
that  time  to  this,  there  has  been  no  want  of  subordination  or 
industry  among  them." 

The  following  account  of  Hayti  at  a  later  period  is  quoted 
from  Mr.  Harvey's  sketches  of  that  island,  during  the  latter 
part  of  the  reign  of  Christophe  : 

"  Those  who  by  their  exertions  and  economy  were  ena- 
bled to  procure  small  spots  of  land  of  their  own,  or  to  hold 
the  smaller  plantations  at  an  annual  rent,  were  diligently 
engaged  in  cultivating  coffee,  sugar,  and  other  articles, 
which  they  disposed  of  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  adjacent 
towns  and  villages.  It  was  an  interesting  sight  to  behold 
this  class  of  the  Haytians,  now  in  possession  of  their  freedom, 
coming  in  groups  to  the  market  nearest  which  they  resided, 
bringing  the  produce  of  their  industry  for  sale  ;  and  after- 
wards returning,  carrying  back  the  necessary  articles  of 
living  which  the  disposal  of  their  commodities  had  enabled 
them  to  purchase ;  all  evidently  cheerful  and  happy.  Nor 
could  it  fail  to  occur  to  the  mind  that  their  present  condition 
furnished  the  most  satisfactory  answer  to  that  objection  to 
the  general  emancipation  of  slaves,  founded  on  their  alleged 
unfitness  to  value  and  improve  the  benefits  of  liberty. 

"  Though  of  the  same  race  and  possessing  the  same  gen- 
eral traits  of  character  as  the  negroes  of  the  other  West 


POSSIBILITY    OP    SAFE    EMANCIPATION.  .       87 

India  islands,  they  are  already  distinguished  from  them  by 
habits  of  industry  and  activity,  such  as  slaves  are  seldom 
known  to  exhibit.  As  they  would  not  suffer,  so  they  do  not 
require,  the  attendance  of  one  acting  in  the  capacity  of  a 
driver  with  the  instrument  of  punishment  in  his  hand." 

"In  Guadaloupe,  the  conduct  of  the  freed,  negrqes  was 
equally  satisfactory.  The  perfect  subordination  which?,  was 
established  and  the  industry  which  prevailed  there,  are  proved 
by  the  official  Reports  of  the  Governor  of  Guadaloupe,  to 
the  French  government.  In  1793  liberty  was  proclaimed 
universally  to  the  slaves  in  that  island,  and  during  their  ten 
years  of  freedom;  their  governors  bore  testimony  to  their 
regular  industry  and  uninterrupted  submission  to  the  laws.'"' 

"  During  the  first  American  war,  a  number  of  slaves  ran 
away  from,  their  North  American  masters  and  joined  the 
British  army.  When  peace  came,  it  was  determined  to  give 
them  their  liberty,  and  to  settle  them  in  Nova  Scotia,  upon 
grants  of  land,  as  British  subjects  and  as  free  men.  Their 
number,  comprehending  men,  women  and  children,  was  two 
thousand  and  upwards.  Some  of  them  worked  upon  little 
portions  of  land  as  their  own  ;  others  worked  as  carpenters  ; 
others  became  fishermen ;  and  others  worked  for  hire  in 
various  ways.  In  time,  having  embraced  Christianity,  they 
raised  places  of  worship  of  their  own,  and  had  ministers  of 
their  own  from  their  own  body.  They  led  a  harmless  life, 
and  gained  the  character  of  an  industrious  and  honest  people 
from  their  white  neighbors.  A  few  years  afterwards,  the 
land  in  Nova  Scotia  being  found  too  poor  to  answer,  and 
the  climate  too  cold  for  their  constitutions,  a  number  of  them 
to  the  amount  of  between  thirteen  and  fourteen  hundred,  vol- 
unteered to  form  a  new  colony  which  was  then  first  thought 
of  at  Sierra  Leone,  to  which  place  they  were  accordingly 
conveyed.  Many  hundreds  of  the  negroes  who  had  formed 
the  West  Indian  black  regiments  were  removed  in  1819  to 
Sierra  Leone,  where  they  were  set  at  liberty  at  once,  and 
founded  the  villages  of  Waterloo,  Hastings,  and  others.  Sev- 
eral hundred  maroons,  (runaway  slaves  and  their  descend- 
ants,) being  exiled  from  Jamaica,  were  removed  in  1801  to 
Sierra  Leone,  where  they  were  landed  with  no  other  prop- 
erty than  the  clothes  which  they  wore  and  the  muskets  which 
ih^-j  carried  in  their  hands.  A  body  of  revolted  slaves  were 
banished  from  Barbadoes  in  1816,  and  sent  also  to  Sierra 
Leone.  The  rest  of  the  population  of  this  colony  consists 


88  POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION . 

almost  entirely  of  negroes  who  have  been  recaptured  from 
slave  ships,  and  brought  to  Sierra  Leone  in  the  lowest  state 
of. misery,  debility  and  degradation:  naked,  diseased,  desti- 
tute, wholly  ignorant  of  the  English  language,  in  this  wretch- 
ed, helpless  condition,  they  have  been  suddenly  made  free, 
and  put  into  possession  at  once  of  the  rights  and  privileges  of 
British  subjects.  A 11  these  instances  of  sudden  emancipation 
have  taken  place  in  a  colony  where  the  disproportion  between 
black  and  white  is  more  than  a  hundred  to  one.  Yet  this 
mixed  population  of  suddenly  emancipated  slaves — runaway 
slaves — criminal  slaves — and  degraded  recaptured  negroesy 
are  in  their  free  condition  living  in  order,  tranquillity  and 
comfort,  and  many  of  them  in  affluence." 

"  During  the  last  American  war,  seven  hundred  and  seventy- 
four  slaves  escaped  from  their  masters,  and  were  at  the  termi- 
nation of  the  war  settled  in  Trinidad  as  free  laborers,  where 
they  are  earning  their  own  livelihood  with  industry  and  good 
conduct.  The  following  extract  of  a  letter,  received  in  1829 
from  Trinidad  by  Mr.  Pownall,  will  show  the  usefulness  and 
respectability  of  these  liberated  negroes.  *  A  field  negro 
brings  four  hundred  dollars,  but  most  of  the  work  is  done  by 
free  blacks  and  people  from  the  main  at  a  much  cheaper  rate; 
and  as  these  are  generally  employed  by  foreigners,  this  ac- 
counts for  their  succeeding  better  than  our  own  countrymen, 
who  are  principally  from  the  old  islands,  and  are  unaccus- 
tomed to  any  other  management  than  that  of  slaves ;  how- 
ever, they  are  coming  into  it  fast.  In  Trinidad,  there  are 
upwards  of  fifteen  thousand  free  people  of  color ;  there  is  not 
a  single  pauper  amongst  them ;  they  live  independently  and 
comfortably,  and  nearly  half  of  the  property  of  the  island  is 
said  to  be  in  their  hands.  It  is  admitted  that  they  are  highly 
respectable  in  character,  and  are  rapidly  advancing  in  knowl- 
edge and  refinement.7  Mr.  Mitchell,  a  sugar  planter  who 
had  resided  twenty-seven  years  in  Trinidad,  and  who  is  the 
superintendent  of  the  liberated  negroes  there,  says  he  knows 
of  no  instance  of  a  manumitted  slave  not  maintaining  himself. 
In  a  paper  printed  by  the  House  of  Commons  in  1827,  (No. 
479,)  he  says  of  the  liberated  blacks  under  his  superintend- 
ence, that  each  of  them  possessed  an  allotment  of  land  which 
he  cultivated,  and  on  which  he  raised  provisions  and  other 
articles  for  himself  and  his  family;  his  wife  and  children 
aiding  him  in  the  work.  A  great  part,  however,  of  the  time 
of  the  men  (the  women  attending  to  the  domestic  menage) 


POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION.  89 

was  freely  given  to  laboring  on  the  neighboring  plantations, 
on  which  they  worked  not  in  general  by  the  day,  but  by  the 
piece.  Mr.  Mitchell  says  that  their  work  is  well  executed, 
and  that  they  can  earn  as  much  as  four  shillings  a  day.  If, 
then,  these  men  who  have  land  on  which  they  can  support 
themselves  are  yet  willing  to  work  for  hire,»how  is  it  possi- 
ble to  doubt  that  in  case  of  general  emancipation,  the  freed 
negroes  who  would  have  no  land  of  their  own  would  gladly 
work  for  wages •?" 

"A  few  years  ago,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  negro  slaves, 
at  different  times,  succeeded  in  making  their  escape  from  Ken- 
tucky into  Canada.  Captain  Stuart,  who  lived  in  Upper  Can- 
ada from  1817  to  1822,  was  generally  acquainted  with  them, 
and  employed  several  of  them  in  various  ways.  He  found 
them  as  good  and  as  trustworthy  laborers,  in  every  respect, 
as  any  emigrants  from  the  islands,  or  from  the  United  States, 
or  as  the  natives  of  the  country.  In  1828,  he  again  visited 
that  country,  and  found  that  their  numbers  had  increased  by 
new  refugees  to  about  three  hundred.  They  had  purchased 
a  tract  of  woodland,  a  few  miles  from  Amherstburgh,  and 
were  settled  on  it,  had  formed  a  little  village,  had  a  minister 
of  their  own  number,  color,  and  choice,  a  good  old  man  of 
some  talent,  with  whom  Captain  Stuart  was  well  acquainted, 
and  though  poor,  were  living  soberly,  honestly  and  industrious- 
ly, and  were  peacefully  and  usefully  getting  their  own  living. 
In  consequence  of  the  Revolution  in  Colombia,  all  the  slaves 
who  joined  the  Colombian  armies,  amounting  to  a  consider, 
able  number,  were  declared  free.  General  Bolivar  enfran- 
chised his  own  slaves  to  the  amount  of  between  seven  and 
eight  hundred,  and  many  proprietors  followed  his  example. 
At  that  time  Colombia  was  overrun  by  hostile  armies,  and 
the  masters  were  often  obliged  to  abandon  their  property. 
The  black  population  (including  Indians)  amounted  to  nine 
hundred  thousand  persons.  Of  these,  a  large  number  was 
suddenly  emancipated,  and  what  has  been  the  effect?  Where 
the  opportunities  of  insurrection  have  been  so  frequent,  and 
so  tempting,  what  has  been  the  effect?  M.  Ravenga declares 
that  the  effect  has  been  a  degree  of  docility  on  the  part  of  the 
blacks,  and  a  degree  of  security  on  the  part  of  the  whites,  un- 
known in  any  preceding  period  of  the  history  of  Colombia." 

"  Dr.  Walsh*  states  that  in  Brazil  there  are  six  hundred 

*  Walsh's  Notes  on  Brazil,  vol.  ii.  page  365. 
8* 


90  POSSIBILITY    OP    SAFE    EMANCIPATION. 

thousand  enfranchised  persons,  either  Africans  or  of  African 
descent,  who  were  either  slaves  themselves  or  are  the  de- 
scendants of  slaves.  He  says  they  are,  generally  speaking, 
'well  conducted  and  industrious  persons,  who  compose  in- 
discriminately different  orders  of  the  community.  There  are 
among  them  merchants,  farmers,  doctors,  lawyers,  priests 
and  officers  of  different  ranks.  Every  considerable  town 
in  the  interior  has  regiments  composed  of  them.'  The  ben- 
efits arising  from  them,  he  adds,  have  disposed  the  whites 
to  think  of  making  free  the  whole  negro  population." 

"  Mr.  Koster,  an  Englishman  living  in  Brazil,  confirms 
Mr.  Walsh's  statement.*  '  There  are  black  regiments,'  he 
observes,  *  composed  entirely  and  exclusively  of  black  creole 
soldiers,  commanded  by  black  Creole  officers  from  the  cor- 
poral to  the  colonel.  I  have  seen  the  several  guard-houses 
of  the  town  occupied  by  these  troops.  Far  from  any  ap- 
prehension being  entertained  on  this  score,  it  is  well  known 
that  the  quietude  of  this  country,  and  the  feeling  of  safety 
which  every  one  possesses,  although  surrounded  by  slaves, 
proceed  from  the  contentedness  of  the  free  people.'  " 

"  The  actual  condition  of  the  hundred  thousand  emanci- 
pated blacks  and  persons  of  color  in  the  British  West  India 
Colonies,  certainly  gives  no  reason  to  apprehend  that  if  a 
general  emancipation  should  take  place,  the  newly  freed 
slaves  would  not  be  able  and  willing  to  support  themselves. 
On  this  point  the  Returns  from  fourteen  of  the  Slave  Colo- 
nies, laid  before  the  House  of  Commons,  in  1826,  give  satis- 
factory information :  they  include  a  period  of  five  years  from 
January  1,  1821,  to  December  31,  1825,  and  give  the  fol- 
lowing account  of  the  state  of  pauperism  in  each  of  these 
colonies. 

"Bahamas. — The  only  establishment  in  the  colony  for 
the  relief  of  the  poor,  appeal's  to  be  a  hospital  or  poor-house. 
The  number  passing  through  the  hospital  annually  was,  on 
the  average,  fifteen  free  black  and  colored  persons  and  thir- 
teen whites.  The  number  of  free  black  and  colored  persons 
is  about  double  that  of  the  whites ;  so  that  the  proportion  of 
white  to  that  of  colored  paupers  in  the  Bahamas,  is  nearly 
two  to  one. 

"  Barbadoes. — The  average  annual  number  of  persons 
supported  in  the  nine  parishes,  from  which  returns  have 

*  Amelioration  of  Slavery,  published  in  No.  16  of  the  Pamphleteer. 


POSSIBILITY  OP  SAFE  EMANCIPATION.  91 

been  sent,  is  nine  hundred  and  ninety-eight,  all  of  whom, 
with  a  single  exception,  are  white.  The  probable  amount 
of  white  persons  in  the  island  is  fourteen  thousand  five  hun- 
dred— of  free  black  and  colored  persons,  four  thousand  five 
hundred. 

"  Berbice. — The  white  population  appears  to  amount  to 
about  six  hundred,  the  free  black  and  colored  to  nine  hun- 
dred. In  1822,  it  appears  that  there  were  seventeen  white 
and  two  colored  paupers. 

"  Demerara. — The  free  black  and  colored  population,  it 
is  supposed,  are  twice  the  number  of  the  whites.  The  ave- 
rage number  of  white  pensioners  on  the  poor  fund  appears 
to  be  fifty-one,  that  of  colored  pensioners  twenty-six.  In  oc- 
casional relief,  the  white  paupers  receive  about  three  times 
as  much  as  the  colored. 

"  Dominica. — The  white  population  is  estimated  at  about 
nine  hundred ;  the  free  black  and  colored  population  was 
ascertained,  in  1825,  to  amount  to  three  thousand  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-two.  During  the  five  years  ending  in  No- 
vember, 1825,  thirty  of  the  former  class  had  received  relief 
from  the  poor  fund,  and  only  ten  of  the  latter,  making  the 
proportion  of  more  than  nine  white  paupers  to  one  colored 
one  in  the  same  number  of  persons. 

"  Jamaica  is  supposed  to  contain  twenty  thousand  whites, 
and  double  that  number  of  free  black  and  colored  persons. 
The  returns  of  paupers  from  the  parishes  which  have  sent 
returns,  exhibit  the  average  number  of  white  paupers  to  be 
two  hundred  ninety-five,  of  black  and  colored  paupers,  one 
hundred  and  forty-eight ;  the  proportion  of  white  paupers  to 
those  of  the  other  class,  according  to  the  whole  population, 
being  as  four  to  one. 

"Nevis. — The  white  population  is  estimated  at  about  eight 
hundred,  the  free  black  and  colored  at  about  eighteen  hun- 
dred. The  number  of  white  paupers  receiving  relief  is  stated 
to  be  twenty-five  ;  that  of  the  other  class,  two;  being  in  the 
proportion  of  twenty-eight  to  one. 

"  St.  Christophers. — The  average  number  of  white  pau* 
pers  appears  to  be  one  hundred  and  fifteen  ;  that  of  the  other 
class,  fourteen ;  although  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  popula- 
tion of  the  latter  class  greatly  outnumbers  that  of  the  former. 

"  Tortola. — In  1825  the  free  black  and  colored  population 
amounted  to  six  hundred  and  seven.  The  whites  are  esti- 
mated at  about  three  hundred.  The  number  of  white  pau- 


92  POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION* 

pers  relieved  appears  to  be  twenty-nine  :  of  the  other  class* 
four :  being  in  the  proportion  of  fourteen  to  one. 

"In  short,  in  a  population  of  free  black  and  colored  per- 
sons amounting  to  from  eighty  thousand  to  ninety  thousand,, 
only  two  hundred  and  twenty-nine  persons  have  received 
any  relief  whatever  as  paupers  during  the  years  1821,  to 
1825  ;  and  these  chiefly  the  concubines  and  children  of  des- 
titute whites ;  while  of  about  sixty-five  thousand  whites,  in 
the  same  time,  sixteen  hundred  and  seventy-five  received 
relief.  The  proportion,  therefore,  of  enfranchised  persons 
receiving  any  kind  of  aid  as  paupers  in  the  West  Indies,  is 
about  one  in  three  hundred  and  seventy:  whereas  the  pro- 
portion among  the  whites  of  the  West  Indies  is  about  one  in 
forty;  and  in  England,  generally  one  in  twelve  or  thirteen 
— in  some  counties,  one  in  eight  or  nine. 

"  Can  any  one  read  these  statements,  made  by  the  colo- 
nists themselves,  and  still  think  it  necessary  to  keep  the 
negroes  in  slavery,  lest  they  should  be  unable  to  maintain 
themselves  if  free  ? 

"In  1823,  the  Assembly  of  Grenada  passed  a  resolution, 
declaring  that  the  free  colored  inhabitants  of  these  colonies, 
were  a  respectable,  well  behaved  class  of  the  community, 
were  possessed  of  considerable  property,  and  were  entitled 
to  have  their  claims  viewed  with  favor. 

"In  1824,  when  Jamaica  had  been  disturbed  for  months 
by  unfounded  alarms  relating  to  the  slaves,  a  committee  of 
the  legislative  assembly  declared  that  'the  conduct  of  the 
freed  people  evinced  not  only  zeal  and  alacrity,  but  a  warm 
interest  in  the  welfare  of  the  colony,  and  every  way  identi- 
fied them  with  those  who  are  the  most  zealous  promoters  of 
its  internal  security.'  The  assembly  confirmed  this  favora- 
ble report  a  few  months  ago,  by  passing  a  bill  conferring  on 
all  free  black  and  colored  persons  the  same  privileges,  civil 
and  political,  with  the  white  inhabitants. 

"In  the  orders  issued  in  1829,  by  the  British  Government, 
in  St.  Lucia,  placing  all  freemen  of  African  descent  upon 
the  footing  of  equal  rights  with  their  white  neighbors,  the 
loyalty  and  good  conduct  of  that  class  are  distinctly  ac- 
knowledged, and  they  are  declared  '  to  have  shown,  hitherto, 
readiness  and  zeal  in  coming  forward  for  the  maintenance 
of  order.'  As  similar  orders  have  been  issued  for  Trinidad, 
Berbice,  and  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  it  may  be  presumed 
that  the  conduct  of  the  free  blacks  and  colored  persons  in 


POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION.  93 

those  colonies  has  likewise  given  satisfaction  to  Govern- 
ment. 

"  In  the  South  African  Commercial  Advertiser,  of  the  9th 
of  February,  1831,  we  are  happy  to  find  recorded  one  more 
of  the  numerous  proofs  which  experience  affords  of  the  safety 
and  expediency  of  immediate  abolition. 

"  Three  thousand  prize  negroes  have  received  their  free- 
dom ;  four  hundred  in  one  day ;  but  not  the  least  difficulty 
or  disorder  occurred  ; — servants  found  masters — masters 
hired  servants ;  all  gained  homeSj  and  at  night  scarcely  an 
idler  was  to  be  seen.  In  the  last  month,  one  hundred  and 
fifty  were  liberated  under  precisely  similar  circumstances, 
and  with  the  same  result.  These  facts  are  within  our  own 
observation ;  and  to  state  that  sudden  and  abrupt  emancipa- 
tion would  create  disorder  and  distress  to  those  you  mean 
to  serve,  is  not  reason,  but  the  plea  of  all  men  who  are  ad- 
verse to  emancipation. 

"  As  far  as  it  can  be  ascertained  from  the  various  docu- 
ments which  have  been  cited,  and  from  others,  which,  from 
the  fear  of  making  this  account  too  long,  arc  not  particularly 
referred  to,  it  appears  that  in  every  place  and  time  in  which 
emancipation  has  been  tried,  not  one  drop  of  white  blood  lias 
been  shed,  or  even  endangered  by  it ;  that  it  has  everywhere 
greatly  improved  the  condition  of  the  blacks,  and  in  most 
places  has  removed  them  from  a  state  of  degradation  and 
suffering  to  one  of  respectability  and  happiness.  Can  it, 
then,  be  justifiable,  on  account  of  any  vague  fears  of  we 
know  not  what  evils,  to  reject  this  just,  salutary  and  hitherto 
uninjurious  measure ;  and  to  cling  to  a  system  which  we 
know,  by  certain  experience,  is  producing  crime,  misery  and 
death,  during  every  day  of  its  existence?" 

In  Mexico,  September  15,  1829,  the  following  decree  was 
issued  ;  "  Slavery  is  for  ever  abolished  in  the  republic ;  and 
consequently  all  those  individuals,  who,  until  this  day,  looked 
upon  themselves  as  slaves,  are  free."  The  prices  of  slaves 
were  settled  by  the  magistrates,  and  they  were  required  to 
work  with  their  master,  for  stipulated  wages,  until  the  debt 
was  paid.  If  the  slave  wished  to  change  masters  he  could 
do  so,  if  another  person  would  take  upon  himself  the  liability 
of  payment,  in  exchange  for  his  labor ;  and  provided  the 
master  was  secured  against  loss,  he  was  obliged  to  consent 
to  the  transaction.  Similar  transfers  might  take  place  to 
accommodate  the  master,  but  never  without  the  consent  of 


94  POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION. 

the  servant.  The  law  regulated  the  allowance  of  provisions^ 
clothing,  &c.,  and  if  the  negro  wished  for  more,  he  might 
have  it  charged,  and  deducted  from  his  wages ;  but  lest 
masters  should  take  advantage  of  the  improvidence  of  their 
servants,  it  was-  enacted,  that  all  charges  exceeding  half  the 
earnings  of  any  slave,  or  family  of  slaves,  should  be  void  in 
law.  The  duties  of  servants  were  denned  as  clearly  as  pos- 
sible by  the  laws,  and  magistrates  appointed  to  enforce  them  ; 
but  the  master  was  entrusted  with  no  power  to  punish,  in 
any  manner  whatever.  It  was  expressly  required  that  tho 
masters  should  furnish  every  servant  with  suitable  means  of 
religious  and  intellectual  instruction. 

A  Vermont  gentleman,  who  had  been  a  slaveholder  in 
Mississippi,  and  afterward  resident  at  Matamoras,  in  Mexico, 
speaks  with  enthusiasm  of  the  beneficial  effects  of  these  reg- 
ulations, and  thinks-  the  example  highly  important  to  the 
United  States.  He  declares  that  the  value  of  the  plantations 
was  soon  increased  by  the  introduction  of  free  labor.  "  No 
one  was  made  poor  by  it.  It  gave  property  to  the  servant, 
and  increased  the  riches  of  the  master." 

The  republics  of  Buenos  Ayres,  Chili,  Bolivia,  Peru,  Co- 
lombia, Guatemala  and  Monte  Video,  likewise  took  steps  for 
the  abolition  of  slavery,  soon  after  they  themselves  came 
into  possession  of  freedom.  In  some  of  these  States,  means 
were  taken  for  the  instruction  of  young  slaves,  who  were  all 
enfranchised  by  law,  on  arriving  at  a  certain  age  ;  in  others, 
universal  emancipation  is  to  tak«  place  after  a  certain  date, 
fixed  by  the  laws.  The  empire  of  Brazil,  and  the  United 
States  are  the  only  American  nations,  that  have  taken  no 
measures  to  destroy  this  most  pestilent  system;  and  I  have 
recently  been  assured  by  intelligent  Brazilians,  that  public 
opinion  in  that  country  is  now  so  strongly  opposed  to  slavery 
that  something  effectual  will  be  done  toward  abolition,  at  the 
very  next  meeting  of  the  Cortes.  If  this  should  take  place, 
the  United  States  will  stand  alone  in  most  hideous  pre- 
eminence. 

When  Necker  wrote  his  famous  book  on  French  finances-, 
he  suggested  a  universal  compact  of  nations  to  suppress  the 
slave  trade.  The  exertions  of  England  alone  have  since 
nearly  realized  his  generous  plan,  though  avarice  and  cun- 
ning do  still  manage  to  elude  her  vigilance  and  power.  She 
has  obtained  from  Spain,  Portugal,  France,  Holland,  and  Den- 
mark, a  mutual  right  to  search  all  vessels  suspected  of  being 


POSSIBILITY    OP    SAFE    EMANCIPATION.  95 

engaged  in  this  wicked  traffic.*  I  believe  I  am  correct  in  say- 
ing  that  ours  is  now  the  only  flag,  which  can  protect  this  ini- 
quity from  the  just  indignation  of  England.  When  a  mutual 
right  of  search  was  proposed  to  us,  a  strong  effort  was  made 
to  blind  the  people  with  their  own  prejudices,  by  urging  the 
old  complaint  of  the  impressment  of  seamen  ;  and  alas,  when 
has  an  unsuccessful  appeal  been  made  to  passion  and  preju- 
dice ?  It  is  evident  that  nothing  on  earth  ought  to  prevent 
co-operation  in  a  cause  like  this.  Besides,  "It  is  useless  for 
us  to  attempt  to  linger  on  the  skirts  of  the  age  that  is  depart- 
ing. The  action  of  existing  causes  and  principles  is  steady 
and  progressive.  It  cannot  be  retarded,  unless  we  would 
*'blow  out  all  the  moral  lights  around  us  ;'  and  if  we  refuse 
to  keep  up  with  it,  we  shall  be  towed  in  the  wake,  whether 
we  are  willing  or  not."f 

When  I  think  of  the  colonies  established  along  the  coast 
Of  Africa — of  Algiers,  conquered  and  civilized— of  the  in- 
creasing wealth  and  intelligence  of  Hayti — of  the  powerful 
efforts  now  being  made  all  over  the  world  to  sway  public 
opinion  in  favor  of  universal  freedom — of  the  certain  emanci- 
pation of  slaves  in  all  British  Colonies — and  above  all,  the 
evident  union  of  purpose  existing  between  the  French  and 
English  cabinets, — I  can  most  plainly  see  the  hand  of  God 
working  for  the  deliverance  of  the  negroes.  We  may  re- 
sist the  blessed  influence  if  we  wMl ;  but  we  cannot  conquer. 
Every  year  the  plot  is  thickening  around  us,  and  the  nations 
of  the  earth,  either  consciously  or  unconsciously,  are  hasten- 
ing the  crisis.  The  defenders  of  the  slave  system  are  situated 
like  the  man  in  the  Iron  Shroud,  the  walls  of  whose  prison 
daily  moved  nearer  and  nearer,  by  means  of  powerful  ma- 
chinery, until  they  crushed  all  that  remained  within  them. 

But  to  return  to  the  subject  of  emancipation.  Nearly 
every  one  of  the  States  north  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  line  once 
held  slaves.  These  slaves  were  manumitted  without  blood- 
shed, and  there  was  no  trouble  in  making  free  colored  la* 
borers  obey  the  laws. 

I  am  aware  that  this  desirable  change  must  be  attended 
with  much  more  difficulty  in  the  Southern  States,  simply  be- 
cause the  evil  has  been  suffered  until  it  is  fearfully  over- 

*  The  British  Government  actually  paid  Spain  four  hundred  thousand 
pounds,  as  an  indemnity  to  those  engaged  in  the  slave  trade,  on  condition 
that  the  traffic  should  be  abolished  by  law  throughout  her  dominions. 

t  Speech  of  Mr.  Brodnax,  of  Virginia. 


96  POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION. 

grown ;  but  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  while  they  are 
using  their  ingenuity  and  strength  to  sustain  it  for  the  pres- 
ent, the  mischief  is  increasing  more  and  more  rapidly.  If 
this  be  not  a  good  time  to  apply  a  remedy,  when  will  be  a 
better  ?  They  must  annihilate  slavery,  or  slavery  will  an- 
nihilate them. 

It  seems  to  be  forgotten  that  emancipation  from  tyranny 
is  not  an  emancipation  from  law  ;  the  negro,  after  he  is 
made  free,  is  restrained  from  the  commission  of  crimes  by 
the  same  laws  which  restrain  other  citizens :  if  he  steals, 
he  will  be  imprisoned  :  if  he  commits  murder,  he  will  be 
hung. 

It  will,  perhaps,  be  said  that  the  free  people  of  color  in 
the  slave  portions  of  this  country  are  peculiarly  ignorant, 
idle,  and  vicious?  It  may  be  so:  for  our  laws  and  our  in- 
fluence are  peculiarly  calculated  to  make  them  bad  members 
of  society.  But  we  trust  the  civil  power  to  keep  in  order 
the  great  mass  of  ignorant  and  vicious  foreigners  continually 
pouring  into  the  country  ;  and  if  the  laws  are  strong  enough 
for  this,  may  they  not  be  trusted  to  restrain  the  free  blacks  ? 

In  those  countries  where  the  slaves  codes  are  mild,  where 
emancipation  is  rendered  easy,  and  inducements  are  offered 
to  industry,  insurrections  are  not  feared,  and  free  people  of 
color  form  a  valuable  portion  of  the  community.  If  we  per. 
sist  in  acting  in  opposition  to  the  established  laws  of  nature 
and  reason,  how  can  we  expect  favorable  results?  But  it  is 
pronounced  unsafe  to  change  our  policy.  Every  progres- 
sive improvement  in  the  world  has  been  resisted  by  despot- 
ism,  on  the  ground  that  changes  were  dangerous.  The  Em- 
peror of  Austria  thinks  there  is  need  of  keeping  his  subjects 
ignorant,  that  good  order  may  be  preserved.  But  what  he 
calls  good  order,  is  sacrificing  the  happiness  of  many  to  the 
advancement  of  a  few;  and  no  doubt  knowledge  is  unfavor- 
able to  the  continuation  of  such  a  state  of  things.  It  is  pre- 
cisely so  with  the  slaveholder ;  he  insists  that  the  welfare 
of  millions  must  be  subordinate  to  his  private  interest,  or  else 
all  good  order  is  destroyed. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  Washington  enfranchised 
his  slaves  in  the  manner  he  did  ;  because  their  poverty  and 
indolence  have  furnished  an  ever  ready  argument  for  those 
who  are  opposed  to  emancipation.*  To  turn  slaves  adrift 

*  With  all  my  unbounded  reverence  for  Washington,  I  have,  I  confess, 
sometimes  found  it  hard  to  forgive  him  for  not  manumitting  his  slaves 


POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION.  97 

in  their  old  age,  unaccustomed  to  take  care  of  themselves, 
without  employment,  and  in  a  community  where  all  the  pre- 
judices were  strongly  arrayed  against  free  negroes,  was  cer« 
tainly  an  unhappy  experiment. 

But  if  slaves  were  allowed  to  redeem  themselves  progros-  I 
sively,  by  purchasing  one  day  of  the  week  after  another,  aa 
they  can  in  the  Spanish  colonies,  habits  of  industry  would 
be  gradually  formed^  and  enterprise  would  be  stimulated,  by 
their  successful  efforts  to  acquire  a  little  property.  And  if 
they  afterward  worked  better  as  free  laborers  than  they  now 
do  as  slaves,  it  would  surely  benefit  their  masters  as  well  as 
themselves. 

That  strong. hearted  republican,  La  Fayette,  when  he  re- 
turned to  France  in  1785,  felt  strongly  urged  by  a  sense  of 
duty,  to  eflect  the  emancipation  of  slaves  in  the  Colony  of 
Cayenne.  As  most  of  the  property  in  the  colony  belonged 
to  the  crown,  he  was  enabled  to  prosecute  his  plans  with 
less  difficulty  than  he  could  otherwise  have  done.  Thirty 
thousand  dollars  were  expended  in  the  purchase  of  planta- 
tions and  slaves  for  the  sole  purpose  of  proving  by  experi- 
ment the  safety  and  good  policy  of  conferring  freedom.  Be. 
ing  afraid  to  trust  the  agents  generally  employed  in  the 
colony,  he  engaged  a  prudent  and  amiable  man  at  Paris 
to  undertake  the  business.  This  gentleman,  being  fully  in- 
structed in  La  Fayette's  plans  and  wishes,  sailed  for  Cayenne. 
The  first  thing  he  did  when  he  arrived,  was  to  collect  all 
the  cart-whips,  and  other  instruments  of  punishment,  and 
have  them  burnt  amid  a  general  assemblage  of  the  slaves; 
he  then  made  known  to  them  the  laws  and  rules  by  which 
the  estates  would  be  governed.  The  object  of  all  the  reg- 
ulations was  to  encourage  industry  by  making  it  the  means 
of  freedom.  This  new  kind  of  stimulus  had  a  most  favora- 
ble effect  on  the  slaves,  and  gave  promise  of  complete  suc- 
cess. But  the  judicious  agent  died  in  consequence  of  the 

long  before  his  death.  A  fact  which  has  lately  come  to  my  knowledge, 
gave  me  great  joy ;  for  it  furnishes  a  reason  for  what  had  appeared  to  me 
unpardonable.  It  appears  that  Washington  possessed  a  gang  of  negroes 
in  right  of  his  wife,  with  which  his  own  negroes  had  intermarried.  By 
the  marriage  settlement,  the  former  were  limited,  in  default  of  issue  of 
the  marriage,  to  the  representatives  of  Mrs.  Washington  at  her  death ; 
so  that  her  negroes  could  not  be  enfranchised.  An  unwillingness  to  sep- 
arate parents  and  children,  husbands  and  wives,  induced  Washington  to 
postpone  the  manumission  of  his  own  slaves.  This  motive  is  briefly, 
and  as  it  were  accidentally,  referred  to  in  his  will. 

9 


£8  POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION. 

climate,  and  the  French  Revolution  threw  every  thing  into 
a  state  of  convulsion  at  home  and  abroad.  The  new  re- 
public of  France  bestowed  unconditional  emancipation  upon 
•the  slaves  in  her  colonies ;  and  had  she  persevered  in  her 
promises  with  good  faith  and  discretion,  the  horrors  of  St. 
Domingo  might  have  been  spared.  The  emancipated  ne- 
groes in  Cayenne  came  in  a  body  to  the  agents,  and  declared 
that  if  the  plantations  still  belonged  to  General  La  Fayette 
they  were  ready  and  willing  to  resume  their  labors  for  the 
benefit  of  one  who  had  treated  them  like  men,  and  cheered 
their  toil  by  making  it  a  certain  means  of  freedom. 

I  cannot  forbear  paying  a  tribute  of  respect  to  the  vener- 
able Moses  Brown,  of  Providence,  Rhode  Island,  now  living 
in  virtuous  and  vigorous  old  age.  He  was  a  slave-owner 
in  early  life,  and,  unless  I  have  been  misinformed,  a  slave- 
dealer,  likewise.  When  his  attention  became  roused  to  re- 
ligious subjects,  these  facts  troubled  his  conscience.  He 
easily  and  promptly  decided  that  a  Christian  could  not  con- 
•istently  keep  slaves ;  but  he  did  not  dare  to  trust  his  own 
nature  to  determine  the  best  manner  of  doing  justice  to  those 
ho  had  wronged.  He  therefore  appointed  a  committee,  be- 
fore whom  he  laid  a  statement  of  the  expenses  he  had  in- 
C'ur red  for  the  food  and  clothing  of  his  slaves,  and  of  the 
number  of  years,  during  which  he  had  had  the  exclusive  ben- 
efit of  their  labors.  He  conceived  that  he  had  no  right  to 
charge  them  for  their  freedom,  because  God  had  given  them 
an  inalienable  right  to  that  possession,  from  the  very  hour  of 
their  birth  ;  but  he  wished  the  committee  to  decide  what 
wages  he  ought  to  pay  them  for  the  work  they  had  done. 
He  cordially  accepted  the  decision  of  the  committee,  paid 
the  negroes  their  dues,  and  left  them  to  choose  such  employ- 
ments as  they  thought  best.  Many  of  the  grateful  slaves 
preferred  to  remain  with  him  as  hired  laborers.  It  is  hardly 
necessary  to  add  that  Moses  Brown  is  a  Quaker. 

It  is  commonly  urged  against  emancipation  that  white  men 
cannot  possibly  labor  under  the  sultry  climate  of  our  most 
southerly  States.  This  is  a  good  reason  for  not  sending  the 
slaves  out  of  the  country,  but  it  is  no  argument  against  mak- 
ing them  free.  No  doubt  we  do  need  their  labor;  but  we 
ought  to  pay  for  it.  Why  should  their  presence  be  any 
more  disagreeable  as  hired  laborers,  than  as  slaves?  In 
Boston,  we  continually  meet  colored  people  in  the  streets, 
and  employ  them  in  various  ways,  without  being  endangered 


POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION.  9D 

or  even  incommoded.  There  is  no  moral  impossibility  in  a 
perfectly  kind  and  just  relation  between  the  two  races. 

If  white  men  think  otherwise,  let  them  remove  from  cli- 
mates which  nature  has  made  too  hot  for  their  constitutions 
Wealth  or  pleasure  often  induces  men  to  change  their  abode; 
an  emigration  for  the  sake  of  humanity  would  be  an  agreea- 
able  novelty.  Algernon  Sidney  said,  "  When  I  cannot  livo 
in  my  own  country,  but  by  such  means  as  are  worse  than 
dying  in  it,  I  think  God  shows  me  that  I  ought  to  keep  my- 
self out  of  it." 

But  the  slaveholders  try  to  stop  all  the  efforts  of  benevo- 
lence, by  vociferous  complaints  about  infringing  upon  their 
property ;  and  justice  is  so  subordinate  to  self-interest,  that 
the  unrighteous  claim  is  silently  allowed,  and  even  openly 
supported,  by  those  who  ought  to  blush  for  themselves,  as 
Christians  and  as  republicans.  Let  men  simplify  their  ar- 
guments— let  them  confine  themselves  to  one  single  question, 
"  What  right  can  a  man  have  to  compel  his  neighbor  to  toil 
without  reward,  and  leave  the  same  hopeless  inheritance  to 
his  children,  in  order  that  lie  may  live  in  luxury  and  indo- 
lence?" Let  the  doctrines  of  expediency  return  to  the  Father 
of  Lies,  who  invented  them,  and  gave  them  power  to  turn 
every  way  for  evil.  The  Christian  knows  no  appeal  from 
the  decisions  of  God,  plainly  uttered  in  his  conscience. 

The  laws  of  Venice  allowed  property  in  human  beings; 
and  upon  this  ground  Shylock  demanded  his  pound  of  flesh, 
cut  nearest  to  the  heart.  Those  who  advertise  mothers  to 
be  sold  separately  from  their  children,  likewise  claim  a  right 
to  human  flesh ;  and  they  too  cut  it  nearest  to  the  heart. 

The  personal  liberty  of  one  man  can  never  be  the  property 
of  another.  All  ideas  of  property  are  founded  upon -the  mu- 
tual agreement  of  the  human  race,  and  are  regulated  by  such 
laws  as  are  deemed  most  conducive  to  the  general  good.  In 
slavery  there  is  no  mutual  agreement ;  for  in  that  case  it 
would  not  be  slavery.  The  negro  has  no  voice  in  the  mat- 
ter— no  alternative  is  presented  to  him — no  bargain  is  made. 
The  beginning  of  his  bondage  is  the  triumph  of  power  over 
weakness  ;  its  continuation  is  the  tyranny  of  knowledge 
over  ignorance.  One  man  may  as  well  claim  an  exclusive 
right  to  the  air  another  man  breathes,  as  to  the  possession 
of  his  limbs  and  faculties.  Personal  freedom  is  the  birth- 
right of  every  human  being.  God  himself  made  it  the  first 
great  law  of  creation ;  and  no  human  enactment  can  render 


100  POSSIBILITY    OF    SAFE    EMANCIPATION. 

it  null  and  void.  "  If,"  says  Price,  "  you  have  a  right  to 
make  another  man  a  slave,  he  has  a  right  to  make  you  a 
slave  ;"  and  Ramsay  says,  "  If  we  have  in  the  beginning  no 
right  to  sell  a  man,  no  person  has  a  right  to  buy  him." 

Am  I  reminded  that  the  laws  acknowledge  these  vested 
rights  in  human  flesh  ?  I  answer  the  laws  themselves  were 
made  by  individuals,  who  wished  to  justify  the  wrong  and 
profit  by  it.  We  ought  never  to  have  recognised  a  claim, 
which  cannot  exist  according  to  the  laws  of  God ;  it  is  our 
duty  to  atone  for  the  error ;  and  the  sooner  we  make  a  be- 
ginning,  the  better  will  it  be  for  us  all.  Must  our  arguments 
be  based  upon  justice  and  mercy  to  the  slaveholders  only  1 
Have  the  negroes  no  right  to  ask  compensation  for  their 
years  and  years  of  unrewarded  toil  ?  It  is  true  that  they 
have  food  and  clothing,  of  such  kind,  and  in  such  quantities, 
as  their  masters  think  proper.  But  it  is  evident  that  this 
is  not  the  worth  of  their  labor  ;  for  the  proprietors  can  give 
from  one  hundred  to  five  and  six  hundred  dollars  for  a  slave, 
beside  the  expense  of  supporting  those  who  are  too  old  or  too 
young  to  labor.  They  could  not  afford,  to  do  this,  if  the 
slave  did  not  earn  more  than  he  receives  in  food  and  cloth- 
ing. If  the  laws  allowed  the  slave  to  redeem  himself  pro- 
gressively, the  owner  would  receive  his  money  back  again ; 
and  the  negro's  years  of  uncompensated  toil  would  be  more 
than  lawful  interest. 

The  southerners  are  much  in  the  habit  of  saying  they 
really  wish  for  emancipation,  if  it  could  be  effected  in  safety; 
but  I  search  in  vain  for  any  proof  that  these  assertions  are 
sincere.  (When  I  say  this  I  speak  collectively;  there  are, 
no  doubt,  individual  exceptions.) 

Instead  of  profiting  by  the  experience  of  other  nations,  the 
slave-owners,  as  a  body,  have  resolutely  shut  their  eyes 
dgainst  the  light,  because  they  preferred  darkness.  Every 
change  in  the  laws  has  riveted  the  chain  closer  and  closer 
upon  their  victims;  every  attempt  to  make  the  voice  of 
reason  and  benevolence  heard  has  been  overpowered  with 
threatening  and  abuse.  A  cautious  vigilance  against  im- 
provement, a  keen-eyed  jealousy  of  all  freedom  of  opinion, 
has  characterized  their  movements.  There  can  be  no  doubt 
that  the  majority  wish  to  perpetuate  slavery.  They  support 
it  with  loud  bravado,  or  insidious  sophistry,  or  pretended 
regret;  but  they  never  abandon  the  point.  Their  great 
desire  is  to  keep  the  public  mind  turned  in  another  direction. 


EMANCIPATION    NOT    SINCERELY    DESIRED.  101 

They  are  well  aware  that  the  ugly  edifice  is  built  of  rotten 
timbers,  and  stands  on  slippery  sands — if  the  loud  voice  of 
public  opinion  could  be  made  to  reverberate  through  its 
dreary  chambers,  the  unsightly  frame  would  fall,  never  to 
rise  again. 

Since  so  many  of  their  own  citizens  admit  that  the  policy 
of  this  system  is  unsound,  and  its  effects  injurious,  it  is  won- 
derful that  they  do  not  begin  to  destroy  the  "  costly  iniquity" 
in  good  earnest.  But  long-continued  habit  is  very  powerful ; 
and  in  the  habit  of  slavery  are  concentrated  the  strongest 
evils  of  human  nature — vanity,  pride,  love  of  power,  licen- 
tiousness, and  indolence. 

There  is  a  minority,  particularly  in  Virginia  and  Kentucky, 
who  sincerely  wish  a  change  ibr  the  better ;  but  they  are 
overpowered,  and  have  not  even  ventured  to  speak,  except 
in  the  great  Virginia  debate  of  1832.  In  the  course  of  that 
debate,  the  spirit  of  slavery  showed  itself  without  disguise. 
The  members  talked  of  emancipation  ;  but  with  one  or  two 
exceptions,  they  merely  wanted  to  emancipate,  or  rather  to 
send  away,  the  surplus  population,  which  they  could  neither 
keep  nor  sell,  and  which  might  prove  dangerous.  They 
wished  to  get  rid  of  the  consequences  of  the  evil,  but  were 
determined  to  keep  the  evil  itself.  Some  members  from 
Western  Virginia,  who  spoke  in  a  better  spirit,  and  founded 
their  arguments  on  the  broad  principles  of  justice,  not  on  the 
mere  convenience  of  a  certain  class,  were  repelled  with  an- 
gry  excitement.  The  eastern  districts  threatened  to  sepa- 
rate from  the  western,  if  the  latter  persisted  in  expressing 
opinions  opposed  to  the  continuance  of  slavery.  From  what 
I  have  uniformly  heard  of  the  comparative  prosperity  of 
Eastern  and  Western  Virginia,  I  should  think  this  was  very 
much  like  the  town's  poor  threatening  to  separate  from  the 
town. 

The  mere  circumstance  of  daring  to  debate  on  the  subject 
was  loudly  reprimanded ;  and  there  was  a  good  deal  of 
indignation  expressed  that  "  reckless  editors,  and  imprudent 
correspondents,  had  presumed  so  far  as  to  allude  to  it  in  the 
columns  of  a  newspaper."  Discussion  in  the  Legislature 
was  strongly  deprecated  until  a  plan  had  been  formed  ;  yet 
they  must  have  known  that  no  plan  could  be  formed,  in  a 
republican  government,  without  previous  discussion.  The 
proposal  contained  within  itself  that  self-perpetuating  power, 
for  which  the  schemes  of  slave-owners  are  so  remarkable. 

9* 


102  EMANCIPATION    NOT    SINCERELY    DESIRED. 

Mr.  Gholson  sarcastically  rebuked  the  restless  spirit  of 
improvement,  by  saying  "  he  really  had  been  under  the 
impression  that  he  owned  his  slaves.  He  had  lately  pur* 
chased  four  women  and  ten  children,  in  whom  he  thought  ho 
had  obtained  a  great  bargain ;  for  he  supposed  they  were  his 
own  property,  as  were  his  brood  mares"  To  which  Mr. 
Roane  replied,  "I  own  a  considerable  number  of  slaves,  and 
am  perfectly  sure  they  are  mine  ;  and  I  am  sorry  to  add 
that  I  have  occasionally,  though  not  often,  been  compelled  to 
make  them  feel  the  impression  of  that  ownership.  I  would 
not  touch  a  hair  on  the  head  of  the  gentleman's  slave,  any 
sooner  than  I  would  a  hair  in  the  mane  of  his  horse." 

Mr.  Roane  likewise  remarked,  "  I  think  slavery  as  much  a 
correlative  of  liberty  as  cold  is  of  heat.  History,  experience, 
observation  and  reason,  have  taught  me  that  the  torch  of 
liberty  has  ever  burned  brighter  when  surrounded  by  the 
dark  and  filthy,  yet  nutritious  atmosphere  of  slavery  !  I  do 
not  believe  in  the  fanfaronade  that  all  men  are  by  nature 
equal.  But  these  abstract  speculations  have  nothing  to  do 
with  the  question,  which  I  am  willing  to  view  as  one  of  cold, 
sheer  state  policy,  in  which  the  safety,  prosperity,  and  hap- 
piness of  the  whites  alone  are  concerned." 

Would  Mr.  Roane  carry  out  his  logic  into  all  its  details  ? 
Would  he  cherish  intemperance,  that  sobriety  might  shine 
the  brighter  ?  Would  he  encourage  theft,  in  order  to  throw 
additional  lustre  upon  honesty?  Yet  there  seems  to  be  pre. 
cisely  the  same  relation  between  these  things  that  there  is 
between  slavery  and  freedom.  Such  sentiments  sound  oddly 
enough  in  the  mouth  of  a  republican  of  the  nineteenth  century ! 

When  Mr.  Wirt,  before  the  Supreme  Federal  Court,  said 
that  slavery  was  contrary  to  the  laws  of  nature  and  of  na- 
tions, and  that  the  law  of  South  Carolina  concerning  seizing 
colored  seamen,  was  unconstitutional,  the  Governor  directed 
several  reproofs  at  him.  In  1825,  Mr.  King  laid  on  the 
table  of  the  United  States  Senate  a  resolution  to  a  ppropriate 
the  proceeds  of  the  public  lands  to  the  emancipation  of 
slaves,  and  the  removal  of  free  negroes,  provided  the  same 
could  be  done  under  and  agreeable  to,  the  laws  of  the  re- 
spective  States.  He  said  he  did  not  wish  it  to  be  debated, 
but  considered  at  some  future  time.  Yet  kindly  and  cau- 
tiously  as  this  movement  was  made,  the  whole  South  resented 
it,  and  Governor  Troup  called  to  the  Legislature  and  people 
of  Georgia,  to  "stand  to  their  arms."  In  1827,  the  people 


1 


EMANCIPATION    NOT    SINCERELY    DESIRED.          103 

of  Baltimore  presented  a  memorial  to  Congress,  praying  that 
slaves  born  in  the  District  of  Columbia  after  a  given  time, 
specified  by  law,  might  become  free  on  arriving  at  a  certain 
age.  A  famous  member  from  South  Carolina  called  this 
an  "  impertinent  interference,  and  a  violation  of  the  princi- 
ples of  liberty"  and  the  petition  was  not  even  committed. 
Another  southern  gentleman  in  Congress  objected  to  th« 
Panama  mission  because  Bolivar  had  proclaimed  liberty  t-- 
the  slaves. 

Mr.  Hayne,  in  his  reply  to  Mr.  Webster,  says  :  "  There 
is  a  spirit,  which,  like  the  father  of  evil,  is  constantly  walk- 
ing  to  and  fro  about  the  earth,  seeking  whom  it  may  devour ; 
it  is  the  spirit  of  false  philanthropy.  When  this  is  infused 
into  the  bosom  of  a  statesman  (if  one  so  possessed  can  be 
called  a  statesman)  it  converts  him  at  once  into  a  visionary 
enthusiast.  Then  he  indulges  in  golden  dreams  of  national 
greatness  and  prosperity.  He  discovers  that  *  liberty  is 
power,'  and  not  content  with  vast,  schemes  of  improvement 
at  home,  which  it  would  bankrupt  the  treasury  of  the  world 
to  execute,  he  flies  to  foreign  lands  to  fulfil  *  obligations  to  the 
human  race,  by  inculcating  the  principles  of  civil  and  reli- 
gious liberty,7  &c.  This  spirit  had  long  been  busy  with  the 
slaves  of  the  South  ;  and  it  is  even  now  displaying  itself  in 
vain  efforts  to  drive  the  government  from  its  wise  policy  in 
relation  to  the  Indians." 

Governor  Miller,  of  South  Carolina,  speaking  of  the  tariff 
and  "  the  remedy,  "  asserted  that  slave  labor  was  preferable 
to  free,  and  challenged  the  free  States  to  competition  on  fair 
terms.  Governor  Hamilton,  of  the  same  State,  in  delivering 
an  address  on  the  same  subject,  uttered  a  eulogy  upon 
slavery ;  concluding  as  usual  that  nothing  but  the  tariff — 
nothing  but  the  rapacity  of  Northerners,  could  have  nullified 
such  great  blessings  of  Providence,  as  the  cheap  labor  and 
fertile  soil  of  Carolina.  Mr.  Calhoun,  in  his  late  speech  in 
the  Senate,  alludes  in  a  tone  of  strong  disapprobation,  and 
almost  of  reprimand,  to  the  remarkable  debate  in  the  Vir- 
ginia Legislature;  the  occurrence  of  which  offence  he 
charges  to  the  opinions  and  policy  of  the  north. 

If  these  things  evince  any  real  desire  to  do  away  the  evil, 
I  cannot  discover  it.  There  are  many  who  inherit  the  mis- 
fortune of  slavery,  and  would  gladly  renounce  the  miserable 
birthright  if  they 'could  ;  for  their  sakes,  I  wish  the  majority 
were  guided  by  a  better  spirit  and  a  wiser  policy.  But  this 


104         EMANCIPATION    NOT    SINCERELY    DESIRED. 

state  of  things  cannot  last.  The  operations  of  Divine  Prov- 
idence are  hastening  the  crisis,  and  move  which  way  we 
will,  it  must  come  in  some  form  or  other ;  if  we  take  warning 
in  time,  it  may  come  as  a  blessing.  The  spirit  of  philan- 
thropy, which  Mr.  Hayne  calls  *  false,'  is  walking  to  and  fro 
in  the  earth ;  and  it  will  not  pause,  or  turn  back,  till  it  has 
fastened  the  golden  band  of  love  and  peace  around  a  sinful 
world.  The  sun  of  knowledge  and  liberty  is  already  high 
in  the  heavens — it  is  peeping  into  every  dark  nook  and 
corner  of  the  earth — and  the  African  cannot  be  always  ex- 
eluded  from  its  beams. 

The  advocates  of  slavery  remind  me  of  a  comparison  I 
once  heard  differently  applied  :  Even  thus  does  a  dog,  un- 
willing to  follow  his  master's  carriage,  bite  the  wheels,  in  a 
vain  effort  to  stop  its  progress. 


INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY,  ETC.         105 


CHAPTER    IV. 


INFLUENCE     OP    SLAVERY    ON    THE   POLITICS    OF  THE    UNITED 
STATES. 


Case*.    I  believe  these  are  portentous  things 
Unto  the  climate  that  they  point  upon. 

Cicero.    Indeed  it  is  a  strange  disposed  time : 
But  men  may  construe  things  after  their  fashion, 
Clean  from  the  purpose  of  the  things  themselves. 

JULIUS   C.E3AR. 


WHEN  slave  representation  was  admitted  into  the  Consti- 
tution of  the  United  States,  a  wedge  was  introduced,  which 
has  ever  since  effectually  sundered  the  sympathies  and  in- 
terests of  different  portions  of  the  country.  By  this  step, 
the  slave  States  acquired  an  undue  advantage,  which  they 
have  maintained  with  anxious  jealousy,  and  in  which  the  free 
States  have  never  perfectly  acquiesced.  The  latter  would 
prohahly  never  have  made  the  concession,  so  contrary  to  their 
principles,  and  the  express  provisions  of  their  State  consti- 
tutions, if  powerful  motives  had  not  been  offered  by  the  South. 
These  consisted,  first,  in  taking  upon  themselves  a  proportion 
of  direct  taxes,  increased  in  the  same  ratio  as  their  represen- 
tation was  increased  by  the  concession  to  their  slaves. 

Second. — In  conceding  to  the  small  States  an  entire  equal- 
ity in  the  Senate.  This  was  not  indeed  proposed  as  an  item 
of  the  adjustment,  but  it  operated  as  such  ;  for  the  small 
States,  with  the  exception  of  Georgia,  (which  in  fact  expected 
to  become  one  of  the  largest,)  lay  in  the  North,  and  were 
either  free,  or  likely  soon  to  become  so. 

During  most  of  the  contest,  Massachusetts,  then  one  of 
the  large  States,  voted  with  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  for 
unequal  representation  in  the  Senate ;  but  on  the  final  ques- 
tion she  was  divided,  and  gave  no  vote.  There  was  prob- 
ably an  increasing  tendency  to  view  this  part  of  the  com- 
promise, not  merely  as  a  concession  of  the  large  to  the  small 
States,  but  also  of  the  largely  slaveholding,  to  the  free,  or 


106       INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY  ON  THE 

slightly  slaveholding  States.  The  two  questions  of  slave 
representation  with  a  proportional  increase  of  direct-  taxes, 
and  of  perfect  equality  in  the  Senate,  were  always  connected 
together  ;  and  a  large  committee  of  compromise,  consisting 
of  one  member  from  each  State,  expressly  recommended  that 
both  provisions  should  be  adopted,  but  neither  of  them  with- 
out the  other. 

Such  were  the  equivalents,  directly  or  indirectly  offered, 
by  which  the  free  States  were  induced  to  consent  to  slave 
representation.  It  was  not  without  very  considerable  strug- 
gles that  they  overcame  their  repugnance  to  admitting  such 
a  principle  in  the  construction  of  a  republican  government. 
Mr.  Gerry,  of  Massachusetts,  at  first  exclaimed  against  it 
with  evident  horror,  but  at  last,  he  was  chairman  of  the 
committee  of  compromise.  Even  the  slave  States  them- 
selves, seem  to  have  been  a  little  embarrassed  with  the  dis- 
cordant element.  A  curious  proof  of  this  is  given  in  the 
language  of  the  Constitution.  The  ugly  feature  is  covered 
as  cautiously  as  the  deformed  visage  of  the  Veiled  Prophet. 
The  words  are  as  follows :  "  Representatives  and  direct 
taxes  shall  be  apportioned  among  the  States  according  to 
their  respective  numbers ;  which  shall  be  ascertained  by 
adding  to  the  whole  number  of  free  persons,  including  those 
iound  to  servitude  for  a  term  of  years,  and  excluding  Indians 
not  taxed,  three  fifths  of  all  oilier  persons."  In  this  most 
elaborate  sentence,  a  foreigner  would  discern  no  slavery. 
None  but  those  already  acquainted  with  the  serpent,  would 
be  able  to  discover  its  sting. 

Governor  Wright,  of  Maryland,  a  contemporary  of  all 
these  transactions,  and  a  slaveholder,  after  delivering  a 
eulogy  upon  the  kindness  of  masters*  expressed  himself  as 
follows  :  "  The  Constitution  guaranties  to  us  the  services  of 
these  persons.  It  does  not  say  slaves ;  for  the  feelings  of 
the  framers  of  that  glorious  instrument  would  not  suffer  them 
to  use  that  word,  on  account  of  its  anti-congeniality — its 
incongeniality  to  the  idea  of  a  constitution  for  freemen.  It 
says, ' persons  held  to  service,  or  labor.' " — Governor  Wright's 
Speech  in  Congress,  March,  1822. 

This  high  praise  bestowed  on  the  form  of  our  constitu- 
tion, reminds  me  of  an  anecdote.  A  clergyman  in  a  neigh- 

*  It  was  stated,  at  the  time,  that  this  person  frequently  steamed  his 
negroes,  in  order  to  reduce  their  size  to  an  equal  weight  for  riding  race- 
horses. This  practice  is  understood  to  be  common  at  the  South. 


POLITICS  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES.        107 

boring  State,  being  obliged  to  be  absent  from  his  parish, 
procured  a  young  man  to  supply  his  place,  who  was  very 
worldly  in  his  inclinations,  and  very  gay  in  his  manners. 
When' the  minister  returned,  his  people  said,  somewhat  re- 
proachfully, "  How  could  you  provide  such  a  man  to  preach 
for  us  ;  you  might  at  least  have  left  ws  a  hypocrite." 

While  all  parties  agreed  to  act  in  opposition  to  the  prin- 
ciples of  justice,  they  all  concurred  to  pay  homage  to  them 
by  hypocrisy  of  language  !  Men  are  willing  to  try  all  means 
to  appear  honest,  except  the  simple  experiment  of  being  so. 
It  is  true,  there  were  individuals  who  distrusted  this  com- 
promise at  the  time,  if  they  did  not  wholly  disapprove  of  it. 
It  is  said  that  Washington,  as  he  was  walking  thoughtfully 
near  the  Schuylkill,  was  met  by  a  member  of  the  Conven- 
tion, to  whom,  in  the  .course  of  conversation,  he  acknowl- 
edged that  he  was  meditating  whether  it  would  not  be  better 
to  separate,  without  proposing  a  constitution  to  the  people ;  for 
he  was  in  great  doubt  whether  the  frame  of  government,  which 
was  now  nearly  completed,  would  be  better  for  them,  than  to 
trust  to  the  course  of  events,  and  await  future  emergencies. 

This  anecdote  was  derived  from  an  authentic  source,  and 
I  have  no  doubt  of  its  truth  :  neither  is  there  any  doubt  that 
Washington  had  in  his  mind  this  great  compromise,  the  pivot 
on  which  the  system  of  government  was  to  turn. 

If  avarice  was  induced  to  shake  hands  with  injustice,  from 
the  expectation  of  increased  direct  taxation  upon  the  South, 
she  gained  little  by  the  bargain.  With  the  exception  of  two 
brief  periods,  during  the  French  war,  and  the  last  war  with 
England,  the  revenue  of  the  United  States  has  been  raised  by 
duties  on  imports.  The  heavy  debts  and  expenditures  of 
the  several  States,  which  they  had  been  accustomed  to  pro- 
vide for  by  direct  taxes,  and  which  they  probably  expected 
to  see  provided  for  by  the  same  means  in  time  to  come,  have 
been  all  paid  by  duties  on  imports.  The  greatest  proportion 
of  these  duties  are,  of  course,  paid  by  the  free  States;  for 
here,  the  poorest  laborer  daily  consumes  several  articles  of 
foreign  production,  of  which  from  one-eighth  to  one-half 
the  price  is  a  tax  paid  to  government.  The  clothing  of  the 
slave  population  increases  the  revenue  very  little,  and  their 
food  almost  none  at  all. 

Wherever  free  labor  and  slave  labor  exist  under  the  same 
government,  there  must  be  a  perpetual  clashing  of  interests. 
The  legislation  required  for  one,  is,  in  its  spirit  and  maxims, 


108         INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY  ON  THE 

diametrically  opposed  to  that  required  for  the  other.  Hence 
Mr.  Madison  predicted,  in  the  convention  which  formed  our 
Federal  Constitution,  that  the  contests  would  be  between  the 
great  geographical  sections  ;  that  such  had  been  the  division, 
even  during  the  war  and  the  confederacy. 

In  the  same  convention,  Charles  Pinckney,  a  man  of  great 
sagacity,  spoke  of  the  equal  representation  of  large  and  small 
States  as  a  matter  of  slight  consequence  ;  no  difficulties,  he 
said,  would  ever  arise  on  that  point ;  the  question  would 
always  be  between  the  slaveholding  and  non-slaveholding 
interests. 

If  the  pressure  of  common  danger,  and  the  sense  of  indi- 
vidual weakness,  during  our  contest  for  independence,  could 
not  bring  the  States  to  mutual  confidence,  nothing  ever  can 
do  it,  except  a  change  of  character.  From  the  adoption  of 
the  constitution  to  the  present  time,  the  breach  has  been 
gradually  widening.  The  South  has  pursued  a  uniform  and 
sagacious  system  of  policy,  which,  in  all  its  bearings,  direct 
and  indirect,  has  been  framed  for  the  preservation  and  exten- 
sion of  slave  power.  This  system  has,  in  the  very  nature 
of  the  two  things,  constantly  interfered  with  the  interests  of 
the  free  States ;  and  hitherto  the  South  have  always  gained 
the  victory.  This  has  principally  been  accomplished  by 
yoking  all  important  questions  together  in  pairs,  and  stren. 
uously  resisting  the  passage  of  one,  unless  accompanied  by 
the  other.  The  South  was  desirous  of  removing  the  seat 
of  government  from  Philadelphia  to  Washington,  because  the 
latter  is  in  a  slave  territory,  where  republican  representa- 
tives and  magistrates  can  bring  their  slaves  without  danger 
of  losing  them,  or  having  them  contaminated  by  the  princi- 
ples of  universal  liberty.  The  assumption  of  the  State  debts, 
likely  to  bring  considerable  money  back  to  the  North,  was 
linked  with  this  question,  and  both  were  carried.  The  ad- 
mission of  Maine  into  the  Union  as  a  free  State,  and  of  Mis- 
souri as  a  slave  State,  were  two  more  of  these  Siamese  twins, 
not  allowed  to  be  separated  from  each  other.  A  numerous 
smaller  progeny  may  be  found  in  the  laying  of  imposts,  and 
the  successive  adjustment  of  protection  to  navigation,  the 
fisheries,  agriculture,  and  manufactures. 

There  would  perhaps  be  no  harm  in  this  system  of  com- 
promises, or  any  objection  to  its  continuing  in  infinite  series, 
if  no  injustice  were  done  to  a  third  party,  which  is  never 
heard  or  noticed,  except  for  purposes  of  oppression. 


POLITICS    OF    THE    UNITED    STATES.  109 

I  reverence  the  wisdom  of  our  early  legislators ;  but  they 
certainly  did  very  wrong  to  admit  slavery  as  an  element  into 
a  free  constitution  ;  and  to  sacrifice  the  known  and  declared 
rights  of  a  third  and  weaker  paity,  in  order  to  cement  a 
union  between  two  stronger  ones.  Such  an  arrangement 
ought  not,  and  could  not,  come  to  good.  It  has  given  the 
slave  States  a  controlling  power  which  they  will  always 
keep,  so  long  as  we  remain  together. 

President  John  Adams  was  of  opinion,  that  this  ascendency 
might  be  attributed  to  an  early  mistake,  originating  in  what 
he  called  the  "  Frankford  advice."  When  the  first  Congress 
was  summoned  in  Philadelphia,  Doctor  Rush,  and  two  or 
three  other  eminent  men  of  Pennsylvania,  met  the  Massa- 
chusetts delegates  at  Frankford,  a  few  miles  from  Philadel- 
phia, and  conjured  them,  as  they  valued  the  success  of  the 
common  cause,  to  let  no  measure  of  importance  appear  to 
originate  with  the  North,  to  yield  precedence  in  all  things 
to  Virginia,  and  lead  her  if  possible  to  commit  herself  to , the 
Revolution.  Above  all,  they  begged  that  not  a  word  might 
be  said  about  "  independence  ;"  for  that  a  strong  prejudice 
already  existed  against  the  delegates  from  New-England,  on 
account  of  a  supposed  design  to  throw  off  their  allegiance 
to  the  mother  country.  "  The  Frankford  advice"  was  fol- 
lowed. The  delegates  from  Virginia  took  the  lead  on  all 
occasions. 

His  son,  John  Q.  Adams,  finds  a  more  substantial  reason. 
In  his  speech  on  the  Tariff,  February  4,  1833,  he  said  :  "Not 
three  days  since,  Mr.  Clayton,  of  Georgia,  called  that  speciea 
of  population  (viz.  slaves)  the  machinery  of  the  South.  Now 
that  machinery  had  twenty  odd  representatives*  in  that  hall, 
— not  elected  by  the  machinery,  but  by  those  who  owned  it. 
And  if  he  should  go  back  to  the  history  of  this  government 
from  its  foundation,  it  would  be  easy  to  prove  that  its  de- 
cisions had  been  affected,  in  general,  by  less  majorities  than 
that.  Nay,  he  might  go  farther,  and  insist  that  that  very 
representation  had  ever  been,  in  fact,  ths  ruling  power  of  this 
government." 

"  The  history  of  the  Union  has  afforded  a  continual  proof 
that  this  representation  of  property,  which  they  enjoy,  as 
well  in  the  election  of  President  and  Vice-President  of  the 

*  There  are  now  twenty-five  odd  representatives— that  is,  representa- 
tives of  slavcn. 

10 


110        INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY  ON  THE 

United  States,  as  upon  the  floor  of  the  House  of  Represen- 
tatives, has  secured  to  the  slaveholding  States  the  entire 
control  of  the  national  policy,  and,  almost  without  exception, 
the  possession  of  the  highest  executive  office  of  the  Union. 
Always  united  in  the  purpose  of  regulating  the  affairs  of 
the  whole  Union  by  the  standard  of  the  slaveholding  interest, 
their  disproportionate  numbers  in  the  electoral  colleges  have 
enabled  them,  in  ten  out  of  twelve  quadrennial  elections,  to 
confer  the  Chief  Magistracy  upon  one  of  their  own  citizens. 
Their  suffrages  at  every  election,  without  exception,  have 
been  almost  exclusively  confined  to  a  candidate  of  their  own 
caste.  Availing  themselves  of  the  divisions  which,  from  the 
nature  of  man,  always  prevail  in  communities  entirely  free, 
they  have  sought  and  found  auxiliaries  in  the  other  quarters 
of  the  Union,  by  associating  the  passions  of  parties,  and  the 
ambition  of  individuals,  with  their  own  purposes,  to  establish 
and  maintain  throughout  the  confederated  nation  the  slave- 
holding  policy.  The  office  of  Vice-President,  a  station  of 
high  dignity,  but  of  little  other  than  contingent  power,  had 
been  usually,  by  their  indulgence,  conceded  to  a  citizen  of 
the  other  section  ;  but  even  this  political  courtesy  was  super- 
seded at  the  election  before  the  last,  and  both  the  offices  of 
President  and  Vice-President  of  the  United  States  were,  by 
the  preponderancy  of  slaveholding  votes,  bestowed  upon 
citizens  of  two  adjoining  and  both  slaveholding  States.  At 
this  moment  the  President  of  the  United  States,  the  President 
of  the  Senate,  the  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 
and  the  Chief  Justice  of  the  United  States,  are  all  citizens  of 
that  favored  portion  of  the  united  republic.  The  last  of 
these  offices,  being  under  the  constitution  held  by  the  tenure 
of  good  behaviour,  has  been  honored  and  dignified  by  the  oc- 
cupation of  the  present  incumbent  upwards  of  thirty  years. 
An  overruling  sense  of  the  high  responsibilities  under  which 
it  is  held,  has  effectually  guarded  him  from  permitting  the 
sectional  slaveholding  spirit  to  ascend  the  tribunal  of  justice  ; 
and  it  is  not  difficult  to  discern,  in  this  inflexible  impartiality, 
the  source  of  the  obloquy  which  that  same  spirit  has  not  been 
inactive  in  attempting  to  excite  against  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  United  States  itself:  and  of  the  insuperable  aversion  of 
the  votaries  of  nullification  to  encounter  or  ubide  by  the  de- 
cision of  that  tribunal,  the  true  and  legitimate  umpire  of  con- 
stitutional, controverted  law." 

It  is  worthy  of  observation  that  this  slave  representation 


POLITICS    OF    THE    UNITED    STATES.  Ill 

is  always  used  to  protect  and  extend  slave  power ;  and  in 
this  way,  the  slaves  themselves  are  made  to  vote  for  slavery : 
they  are  compelled  to  furnish  halters  to  hang  their  posterity* 

Machiavel  says  that  "  the  whole  politics  of  rival  states 
consist  in  checking  the  growth  of  one  another."  It  is  su€. 
ficiently  obvious,  that  the  slave  and  free  States  are,  and 
must  be,  rivals,  owing  to  the  inevitable  contradiction  of  their 
interests.  It  needed  no  Machiavel  to  predict  the  result.  A 
continual  strife  has  been  going  on,  more  or  less  earnest,  ac- 
cording to  the  nature  of  the  interests  it  involved,  and  the 
South  has  always  had  strength  and  skill  to  carry  her  point. 
Of  all  our  Presidents,  Washington  alone  had  power  to  keep 
the  jealousies  of  his  countrymen  in  check;  and  he  used  his 
influence  nobly.  Some  of  his  successors  have  cherished 
those  jealousies,  and  made  effective  use  of  them. 

The  people  of  the  North  have  to  manage  a  rocky  and  re- 
luctant soil ;  hence  commerce  and  the  fisheries  early  attracted 
their  attention.  The  products  of  these  employments  were, 
as  they  should  be,  proportioned  to  the  dexterity  and  hard 
labor  required  in  their  pursuit.  The  North  grew  opulent ; 
and  her  politicians,  who  came  in  contact  with  those  of  the 
South  with  any  thing  like  rival  pretensions,  represented  the 
commercial  class,  which  was  the  nucleus  of  the  old  Federal 
party. 

The  Southerners  have  a  genial  climate  and  a  fertile  soil ; 
but  in  consequence  of  the  cumbrous  machinery  of  slave 
labor,  which  is  slow  for  every  thing,  (except  exhausting  the 
soil,)  they  have  always  been  less  prosperous  than  the  free 
States.  It  is  said,  I  know  not  with  how  much  truth,  but  it 
is  certainly  very  credible,  that  a  great  proportion  of  their 
plantations  are  deeply  mortgaged  in  New- York  and  Phila- 
delphia. It  is  likewise  said  that  the  expenses  of  the  planters 
are  generally  one  or  two  years  in  advance  of  their  income. 
Whether  these  statements  be  true  or  not,  the  most  casual 
observer  will  decide,  that  the  free  States  are  uniformly  the 
most  prosperous,  notwithstanding  the  South  possesses  a  po- 
litical power,  by  which  she  manages  to  check-mate  us  at 
every  important  move.  When  we  add  this  to  the  original 
jealousy  spoken  of  by  Mr.  Madison,  it  is  not  wonderful  that 
Southern  politicians  take  so  little  pains  to  conceal  their  strong 
dislike  of  the  North. 

A  striking  difference  of  manners,  also  caused  by  slavery, 
serves  to  aggravate  other  differences.  Slaveholders  have 


j!2        INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY  ON  THE 

the  habit  of  command ;  and  from  the  superior  ease  with 
which  it  sits  upon  them,  they  seem  to  imagine  that  they  were 
"  born  to  command,"  and  we  to  obey.  In  time  of  war,  they 
tauntingly  told  us  that  we  might  furnish  the  men,  and  they 
would  furnish  the  officers ;  but  in  time  of  peace  they  find  our 
list  of  pensioners  so  large,  they  complain  that  we  did  furnish 
so  many  men. 

At  the  North,  every  t>ody  is  busy  in  some  employment, 
and  politics,  with  very  few  exceptions,  form  but  a  brief  epi- 
sode in  the  lives  of  the  citizens.  But  the  Southern  politi- 
cians are  men  of  leisure.  They  have  nothing  to  do  but  to 
ride  round  their  plantations,  hunt,  attend  the  races,  study 
politics  for  the  next  legislative  or  congressional  campaign, 
and  decide  how  to  use  the  prodigious  mechanical  power,  of 
slave  representation,  which  a  political  Archimedes  may  ef- 
fectually wield  for  the  destruction  of  commerce,  or  any  thing 
else,  involving  the  prosperity  of  the  free  States.* 

It  has  been  already  said,  that  most  of  the  wealth  in  New- 
England  was  made  by  commerce ;  consequently  the  South 
became  unfriendly  to  commerce.  There  was  a  class  in 
New-England,  jealous,  and  not  without  reason,  of  thoir  own 
commercial  aristocracy.  It  was  the  policy  of  the  South  to 
foment  their  passions,  and  increase  their  prejudices.  Thus 
was  the  old  Democratic  party  formed ;  and  while  that  party 
honestly  supposed  they  were  merely  resisting  the  encroach- 
ments  of  a  nobility  at  home,  they  were  actually  playing  a 
game  for  one  of  the  most  aristocratic  classes  in  the  world 
— viz.  the  Southern  planters.  A  famous  slave-owner  and 
politician  openly  boasted,  that  the  South  could  always  put 
down  the  aristocracy  of  the  North,  by  means  of  her  own 
democracy.  In  this  point  of  view,  democracy  becomes  a 
machine  used  by  one  aristocratic  class  against  another,  that 
has  less  power,  and  is  therefore  less  dangerous. 

There  are  features  in  the  organization  of  society,  resulting 
from  slavery,  which  are  conducive  to  any  thing  but  the  union 
of  these  States.  A  large  class  are  without  employment,  are 

*  The  Hon.  W.  B.  Seabrook,  a  southern  gentleman,  has  lately  written 
a  pamphlet  on  the  management  of  slaves,  in  which  he  says :  "  An  addi- 
tion of  one  million  dollars  to  the  private  fortune  of  Daniel  Webster,  would 
not  give  to  Massachusetts  more  than  she  now  possesses  in  the  federal 
councils.  On  the  other  hand,  every  increase  of  slave  property  in  South 
Carolina,  is  a  fraction  thrown  into  the  scale,  by  which  her  representation 
in  Congress  is  determined." 


POLITICS    OF    THE    UNITED    STATES.  113 

accustomed  to  command,  and  have  a  strong  contempt  for 
habits  of  industry.  This  class,  like  the  nobility  of  feudal  times, 
are  restless,  impetuous,  eager  for  excitement,  and  prompt  to 
settle  all  questions  with  the  sword.  Like  the  fierce  old 
barons,  at  the  head  of  their  vassals,  they  are  ever  ready  to 
resist  and  nullify  the  central  power  of  the  State,  whenever  ; 
it  interferes  with  their  individual  interests,  or  even  approaches 
the  strong  holds  of  their  prejudices.  All  history  shows,  that 
men  possessing  hereditary,  despotic  power,  cannot  easily  ba 
brought  to  acknowledge  a  superior,  either  in  the  adminis- 
trators of  the  laws,  or  in  the  law  itself.  Jt  was  precisely 
such  a  class  of  men  that  covered  Europe  with  camps,  for 
upwards  often  centuries. 

A  Southern  governor  has  dignified  duelling  with  the  name 
of  an  "  institution ;"  and  the  planters  generally,  seem  to 
regard  it  as  among  those  which  they  have  denominated  their 
"  peculiar  institutions."  General  Wilkinson,  who  was  the 
son  of  a  slave-owner,  expresses  in  his  memoirs,  great  abhor- 
rence of  duelling,  and  laments  the  powerful  influence  which 
his  father's  injunction,  when  a  boy,  had  upon  his  after  life : 
"  James,"  said  the  old  gentleman,  "  if  you  ever  take  an  in- 
suit,  I  will  disinherit  you." 

A  young  lawyer,  who  went  from  Massachusetts  to  reside 
at  the  South,  has  frequently  declared  that  he  could  not  takd 
any  stand  there  as  a  lawyer,  or  a  gentleman,  until  he  had 
fought :  he  was  subject  to  continual  insult  and  degradation, 
until  he  had  evinced  his  readiness  to  kill,  or  be  killed.  It 
is  obvious  that  such  a  state  of  morals  elevates  mere  physical 
courage  into  a  most  undue  importance.  There  are  indeed 
emergencies,  when  all  the  virtues,  and  all  the  best  affections 
of  man,  are  intertwined  with  personal  bravery ;  but  this  is 
not  the  kind  of  courage,  which  makes  duelling  in  fashion. 
The  patriot  nobly  sacrifices  himself  for  the  good  of  others  ; 
the  duellist  wantonly  sacrifices  others  to  himself. 

Browbeating,  which  is  the  pioneer  of  the  pistol,  charac- 
terizes, particularly  of  late  years,  the  Southern  legislation. 
By  these  means,  they  seek  to  overawe  the  Representatives 
from  the  free  States,  whenever  any  question  even  remotely 
connected  with  slavery  is  about  to  be  discussed  ;  and  this, 
united  with  our  strong  reverence  for  the  Union,  has  made 
our  legislators  shamefully  cautious  with  regard  to  a  subject, 
which  peculiarly  demands  moral  courage,  and  an  abandon- 
ment  of  selfish  considerations.  If  a  member  of  Congress 

10* 


114         INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY  ON  i^* 

does  stand  his  ground  firmly,  if  he  wants  no  preferment  or 
profit,  which  the  all-powerful  Southern  influence  can  give, 
an  effort  is  then  made  to  intimidate  him.  The  instances  are 
numerous  in  which  Northern  men  have  been  insulted  and 
challenged  by  their  Southern  brethren,  in  consequence  of 
the  adverse  influence  they  exerted  over  the  measures  of  the 
Federal  government.  This  turbulent  evil  exists  only  in  our 
slave  States  ;  and  the  peace  of  the  country  is  committed  to 
their  hands  whenever  iwenty-five  votes  in  Congress  can  turn 
the  scale  in  faver  of  war. 

The  statesmen  of  the  South  have  generally  been  planters. 
Their  agricultural  products  must  pay  the  merchants — foreign 
and  domestic, — the  ship-owner,  the  manufacturer, — and  all 
others  concerned  in  the  exchange  or  manipulation  of  them. 
It  is  universally  agreed  that  the  production  of  the  raw  ma. 
terials  is  the  least  profitable  employment  of  capital.  The 
planters  have  always  entertained  a  jealous  dislike  of  those 
engaged  in  the  more  profitable  business  of  the  manufacture 
and  exchange  of  products ;  particularly  as  the  existence  of 
slavery  among  them  destroys  ingenuity  and  enterprise,  and 
compels  them  to  employ  the  merchants,  manufacturers,  and 
sailors,  of  the  free  States.*  Hence  there  has  ever  been  a 
tendency  to  check  New- England,  whenever  she  appears  to 
shoot  up  with  vigorous  rapidity.  Whether  she  tries  to  live 
by  hook  or  by  crook,  there  is  always  an  effort  to  restrain  her 
within  certain  limited  bounds.  The  embargo,  passed  with, 
out  limitation  of  time,  (a  thing  unprecedented,)  was  fastened 
upon  the  bosom  of  her  commerce,  .until  life  was  extinguished. 
The  ostensible  object  of  this  measure,  was  to  force  Great 
Britain  to  terms,  by  distressing  the  West  Indies  for  food. 
But  while  England  commanded  the  seas,  her  colonies  were 
not  likely  to  starve ;  and  for  the  sake  of  this  doubtful  exper- 
iment, a  certain  and  incalculable  injury  was  inflicted  upon 
the  Northern  States.  Seamen,  and  the  numerous  classes 
of  mechanics  connected  with  navigation,  were  thrown  out 
of  employment,  as  suddenly  as  if  they  had  been  cast  on  a 
desert  island  by  some  convulsion  of  nature.  Thousands  of 
families  were  ruined  by  that  ill-judged  measure.  Has  any 
government  a  right  to  inflict  so  much  direct  suffering  on  a 
very  large  portion  of  their  own  people,  for  the  sake  of  an 

*  Virginia  has  great  natural  advantages  for  becoming  a  manufacturing 
country ;  but  slavery,  that  does  evil  to  all  and  good  to  none,  produces  a 
•tate  of  tilings  which  renders  that  impossible. 


POLITICS    OF    THE    UNITED    STATES.  115 

indirect  and  remote  evil  which  may  possibly  be  inflicted  on 
an  enemy  ? 

It  is  true,  agriculture  suffered  as  well  as  commerce  ;  but 
agricultural  products  could  be  converted  into  food  and  cloth- 
ing ;  they  would  not  decay  like  ships,  nor  would  the  pro- 
ducers be  deprived  of  employment  and  sustenance,  like  those 
connected  with  navigation. 

Whether  this  step  was  intended  to  paralyze  the  North  or 
not,  it  most  suddenly  and  decidedly  produced  that  effect. 
We  were  told  that  it  was  done  to  save  our  commerce  from 
falling  into  the  hands  of  the  English  and  French.  But  our 
merchants  earnestly  entreated  not  to  be  thus  saved.  At  the 
very  moment  of  the  embargo,  underwriters  were  ready  to 
insure  at  the  usual  rates. 

The  non-intercourse  was  of  the  same  general  character 
as  the  embargo,  but  less  offensive  and  injurious.  The  war 
crowned  this  course  of  policy  ;  and  like  the  other  measures, 
was  carried  by  slave  votes.  It  was  emphatically  a  Southern, 
not  a  national  war.  Individuals  gained  glory  by  it,  and 
many  of  them  nobly  deserved  it ;  but  the  amount  of  benefit 
which  the  country  derived  from  that  war  might  be  told  in 
much  fewer  words  than  would  enumerate  the  mischiefs  it 
produced. 

•  The  commercial  States,  particularly  New-England,  have 
been  frequently  reproached  for  not  being  willing  to  go  to 
war  for  the  protection  of  their  own  interests  ;  and  have  been 
charged  with  pusillanimity  and  ingratitude  for  not  warmly 
seconding  those  who  were  so  zealous  to  defend  their  cause. 
Mr.  Hayne,  during  the  great  debate  with  Mr.  Webster,  in 
the  Senate,  made  use  of  this  customary  sarcasm.  It  is 
revived  whenever  the  sectional  spirit  of  the  South,  or  party 
spirit  in  the  North,  prompts  individuals  to  depreciate  the 
tulents  and  character  of  any  eminent  Northern  man.  The 
Southern  States  have  even  gone  so  far  on  this  subject,  as  to 
assume  the  designation  of  "patriot  States,"  in  contra-distinc- 
tion  to  their  northern  neighbors — and  this  too,  while  Bunker 
Hill  and  Faneuil  Hall  are  still  standing !  .  It  certainly  was 
a  pleasant  idea  to  exchange  the  appellation  of  slave  States 
for  that  of  patriot  States — it  removed  a  word  which  in  a  re- 
public  is  unseemly  and  inconsistent. 

Whatever  may  be  thought  of  the  justice  and  expediency 
of  the  last  war,  it  was  certainly  undertaken  against  the 
earnest  wishes  of  the  commercial  States — two  thirds  of  the 


116        INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY  ON  THE 

Representatives  from  those  States  voted  in  opposition  to  the 
measure.  According  to  the  spirit  of  the  constitution  it  ought 
not  to  have  passed  unless  there  were  two  thirds  in  favor  of  it. 
Why  then  should  the  South  have  insisted  upon  conferring  a 
boon,  which  was  not  wanted ;  and  how  happened  it,  that 
Yankees,  with  all  their  acknowledged  shrewdness  in  money 
matters,  could  never  to  this  day  perceive  how  they  were  pro- 
tected by  it?  Yet  New-England  is  reproached  with  cow- 
ardice  and  ingratitude  to  her  Southern  benefactors !  If  one 
man  were  to  knock  another  down  with  a  broad-axe,  in  the 
attempt  to  brush  a  fly  from  his  face,  and  then  blame  him  for 
not  being  sufficiently  thankful,  it  would  exactly  illustrate  the 
relation  between  the  North  and  the  South  on  this  subject. 

If  the  protection  of  commerce  had  been  the  real  object  of 
the  war,  would  not  some  preparations  have  been  made  for 
a  navy  ?  It  was  ever  the  policy  of  the  slave  States  to  de- 
stroy the  navy.  Vast  conquests  by  land  were  contemplated, 
for  the  protection  of  Northern  commerce.  .  Whatever  was 
intended,  the  work  of  destruction  was  done.  The  policy  of 
the  South  stood  for  awhile  like  a  giant  among  ruins.  New- 
England  received  a  blow,  which  crushed  her  energies,  but 
could  not  annihilate  them.  Where  the  system  of  free  labor 
prevails,  and  there  is  work  of  any  kind  to  be  done,  there  is 
a  safety-valve  provided  for  any  pressure.  In  such  a  com- 
munity there  is  a  vital  and  active  principle,  which  cannot  be 
long  repressed.  You  may  dam  up  the  busy  waters,  but  they 
will  sweep  away  obstructions,  or  force  a  new  channel. 

Immediately  after  the  peace,  when  commerce  again  began 
to  try  her  broken  wings,  the  South  took  care  to  keep  her 
down,  by  multiplying  permanent  embarrasments,  in  the  shape 
of  duties.  The  direct  tax  (which  would  have  borne  equally 
upon  them,  and  which  in  the  original  compact  was  the  equiv- 
alent for  stave  representation,)  was  forthwith  repealed,  and 
commerce  was  burdened  with  the  payment  of  the  national 
debt.  The  encouragement  of  manufactures,  the  consump. 
tion  of  domestic  products,  or  living  within  ourselves,  was  then 
urged  upon  us.  This  was  an  ancient  doctrine  of  the  demo- 
cratic party.  Mr.  Jefferson  was  its  strongest  advocate. 
Did  he  think  it  likely  to  bear  unfavorably  upon  "  the  nation 
of  shopkeepers  and  pedlers  ?"*  The  Northerners  adopted 
it  with  sincere  views  to  economy,  and  more  perfect  hide- 

*  Mr.  Jefferson's  description  of  New-England 


POLITICS    OF    THE    UNITED    STATES.  117 

pendence.  The  duties  were  so  adjusted  as  to  embarrass 
commerce,  and  to  guard  the  interests  of  a  few  in  the  North, 
who  from  patriotism,  party  spirit,  or  private  interest,  had 
established  manufactures  on  a  considerable  scale.  This  sys- 
tem of  protection  opposed  by  the  North,  was  begun  in  1816 
by  Southern  politicians,  and  enlarged  and  confirmed  by  them 
in  1824.  It  was  carried  nearly  as  much  by  Southern  influ- 
ence, as  was  the  war  itself;  and  if  the  votes  were  placed 
side  by  side,  there  could  not  be  a  doubt  of  the  identity  of 
the  interests  and  passions,  which  lay  concealed  under  both. 
But  enterprise,  that  moral  perpetual  motion,  overcomes  all 
obstacles.  Neat  and  flourishing  villages  rose  in  every  val- 
ley of  New-England.  The  busy  hum  of  machinery  made 
music  with  her  neglected  waterfalls.  All  her  streams,  like 
the  famous  Pactolus,  flowed  with  gold.  From  her  discour- 
aged and  embarrassed  commerce  -arose  a  greater  blessing, 
apparently  indestructible.  Walls  of  brick  and  granite  could 
not  easily  be  overturned  by  the  Southern  lever,  and  left  to 
decay,  as  the  ship-timber  had  done.  Thus  Mordecai  was 
again  seated  in  the  king's  gate,  by  means  of  the  very  system 
intended  for  his  ruin.  As  soon  as  this  state  of  things  be- 
came perceptible,  the  South  commenced  active  hostility  with 
manufactures.  Doleful  pictures  of  Southern  desolation  and 
decay  were  given,  and  all  attributed  to  manufactures.  The 
North  was  said  to  be  plundering  the  South,  while  she,  poor 
dame,  was  enriching  her  neighbors,  and  growing  poor  upon 
her  extensive  labors.  (If  this  statement  be  true,  how  much 
gratitude  do  we  owe  the  negroes ;  for  they  do  all  the  work 
that  is  done  at  the  South.  Their  masters  only  serve  to  keep 
them  in  a  condition,  where  they  do  not  accomplish  half  as 
much  as  they  otherwise  would.) 

New-England  seems  to  be  like  the  poor  lamb  that  tried 
to  drink  at  the  same  stream  with  the  wolf.  "  You  make  the 
water  so  muddy  I  can't  drink,"  says  the  wolf:  "I  stand 
below  you,"  replied  the  lamb,  "  and  therefore  it  cannot  be." 
"  You  did  me  an  injury  last  year,"  retorted  the  wolf.  "  I 
was  not  born  last  year,"  rejoined  the  lamb.  "  Well,  well," 
exclaimed  the  wolf,  "  then  it  was  your  father  or  mother, 
I'll  eat  you,  at  all  events." 

The  bitter  discussions  in  Congress  have  grown  out  of  this 
strong  dislike  to  the  free  States  ;  and  the  crown  of  the  whole 
policy  is  nullification.  The  single  State  of  South  Carolina 
has  undertaken  to  abolish  the  revenues  of  the  whole  nation  3 


118        INFLUENCE  OP  SLAVERY  ON  THE 

and  threatened  the  Federal  Government  with  cecession  from 
the  Union,  in  case  the  laws  were  enforced  by  any  other 
means,  than  through  the  judicial  tribunals. 

"  It  is  not  a  little  extraordinary  that  this  new  pretention 
of  South  Carolina,  the  State  which  above  all  others  enjoys 
this  unrequited  privilege  of  excessive  representation,  released 
from  all  payment  of  the  direct  taxes,  of  which  her  proportion 
would  be  nearly  double  that  of  any  non-si  a veholding  State, 
should  proceed  from  that  very  complaint  that  she  bears  an 
unequal  proportion  of  duties  of  imposts,  which,  by  the  con- 
stitution of  the  United  States,  are  required  to  be  uniform 
throughout  the  Union.  Vermont,  with  a  free  population  of 
two  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  souls,  has  five  represen- 
tatives in  the  popular  House  of  Congress,  and  seven  Electors 
for  President  and  Vice-President.  South  Carolina,  with  a 
free  population  of  less  than  two  hundred  and  sixty  thousand 
souls,  sends  nine  members  to  the  House  of  Representatives, 
and  honors  the  Governor  of  Virginia  with  eleven  votes  for 
the  office  of  President  of  the  United  States.  If  the  rule  of 
representation  were  the  same  for  South  Carolina  and  for 
Vermont,  they  would  have  the  same  number  of  Representa- 
tives in  the  House,  and  the  same  number  of  Electors  for 
the  choice  of  President  and  Vice-President.  She  has  nearly 
double  the  number  of  both." 

What  would  tho  South  have  ?  They  took  the  management 
at  the  very  threshold  of  our  government,  and,  excepting 
the  rigidly  just  administration  of  Washington,  they  have 
kept  it  ever  since.  They  claimed  slave  representation  and 
obtained  it.  For  their  convenience  the  revenues  were  raised 
by  imposts  instead  of  direct  taxes,  and  thus  they  give  little 
or  nothing  in  exchange  for  their  excessive  representation. 
They  have  increased  the  slave  States,  till  they  have  twenty- 
five  votes  in  Congress — They  have  laid  the  embargo,  and 
declared  war — -They  have  controlled  the  expenditures  of  the 
nation — They  have  acquired  Louisiana  and  Florida  for  an 
eternal  slave  market,  and  perchance  for  the  manufactory  of 
more  slave  States — They  have  given  five  presidents  out  of 
seven  to  the  United  States — And  in  their  attack  upon  manu- 
factures, they  have  gained  Mr.  Clay's  concession  bill.  "  But 
all  this  availeth  not,  so  long  as  Mordecai  the  Jew  sitteth  in  the 
king's  gate."  The  free  States  must  be  kept  down.  But  change 
their  policy  as  they  will,  free  States  cannot  be  kept  down. 
There  is  but  one  way  to  ruin  them  ;  and  that  is  to  make  them 


POLITICS  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES.       119 

slave  States.  If  the  South  with  all  her  power  and  skill  cannot 
manage  herself  into  prosperity,  it  is  because  the  difficulty  lies 
at  her  own  doors,  and  she  will  not  remove  it.  At  one  time 
her  deserted  villages  were  attributed  to  the  undue  patronage 
bestowed  upon  settlers  on  the  public  lands :  at  another,  the 
tariff  is  the  cause  of  her  desolation.  Slavery,  the  real  root 
of  the  evil,  is  carefully  kept  out  of  sight,  as  a  "delicate  sub- 
ject," which  must  not  be  alluded  to.  It  is  a  singular  fact  in 
the  present,  age  of  the  world,  that  delicate  and  indelicate 
subjects  mean  precisely  the  same  thing. 

If  any  proof  were  wanted,  that  slavery  is  the  cause  of  all 
this  discord,  it  is  furnished  by  Eastern  and  Western  Virginia. 
They  belong  to  the  same  State,  and  are  protected  by  the 
same  laws ;  but  in  the  former,  the  slaveholding  interest  is 
very  strong — while  in  the  latter,  it  is  scarcely  any  thing. 
The  result  is,  warfare,  and  continual  complaints,  and  threats 
of  separation.  There  are  no  such  contentions  between  the 
different  sections  of  free  States;  simply  because  slavery,  the 
exciting  cause  of  strife,  does  not  exist  among  them. 

The  constant  threat  of  the  slaveholding  States  is  the  dis- 
solution of  the  Union  ;  and  they  have  repeated  it  with  all  the 
earnestness  of  sincerity,  though  there  are  powerful  reasons 
why  it  would  not  be  well  for  them  to  venture  upon  that  un- 
tried state  of  being.  In  one  respect  only,  are  these  threats 
of  any  consequence — they  have  familiarized  the  public  mind 
with  the  subject  of  separation,  and  diminished  the  reverence, 
with  which  the  free  States  have  hitherto  regarded  the  Union. 

The  farewell  advice  of  Washington  operated  like  a  spell 
upon  the  hearts  and  consciences  of  his  countrymen.  For 
many,  many  years  after  his  death,  it  would  almost  have 
been  deemed  blasphemy  to  speak  of  separation  as  a  possible 
event.  I  would  that  it  still  continued  so !  But  it  is  now  an 
every-day  occurrence,  to  hear  politicians,  of  all  parties,  con- 
jecturing what  system  would  be  pursued  by  different  sections 
of  the  country,  in  case  of  a  dissolution  of  the  Union.  This 
evil  is  likewise  chargeable  upon  slavery.  The  threats  of 
separation  have  uniformly  come  from  the  slaveholding  States ; 
and  on  many  important  measures  the  free  States  have  been 
awed  into  acquiescence  by  their  respect  for  the  Union, 

Mr.  Adams,  in  the  able  and  manly  report  before  alluded 
to,  says :  "  It  cannot  be  denied  that  in  a  community  spreading 
over  a  large  extent  of  territory,  and  politically  founded  upon 
the  principles  proclaimed  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence, 


120       INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY  ON  THE 

but  differing  so  widely  in  the  elements  of  their  social  condi- 
tion, that  the  inhabitants  of  one-half  the  territory  are  wholly 
free,  and  those  of  the  other  half  divided  into  masters  and 
slaves,  deep  if  not  irreconcilable  collisions  of  interest  must 
abound.  The  question  whether  such  a  community  can  exist 
under  one  common  government,  is  a  subject  of  profound,  phi- 
losophical speculation  in  theory.  Whether  it  can  continue 
long  to  exist,  is  a  question  to  be  solved  only  by  the  experi- 
ment now  making  by  the  people  of  this  Union,  under  that 
national  compact,  the  constitution  of  the  United  States." 

The  admission  of  Missouri  into  the  Union  is  another  clear 
illustration  of  the  slaveholding  power.  That  contest  was 
marked  by  the  same  violence,  and  the  same  threats,  as  have 
characterized  nullification.  On  both  occasions  the  planters 
were  pitted  against  the  commercial  and  manufacturing  sec- 
tions of  the  country.  On  both  occasions  the  democracy  of 
the  North  was,  by  one  means  or  another,  induced  to  throw 
its  strength  upon  the  Southern  lever,  to  increase  its  already 
prodigious  power.  On  both,  and  on  all  occasions,  some  little 
support  has  been  given  to  Northern  principles  in  Maryland, 
Virginia,  and  North  Carolina;  because  in  portions  of  those 
States  there  is  a  considerable  commercial  interest,  and  some 
encouragement  of  free  labor.  So  true  it  is,  in  the  minutest 
details,  that  slavery  and  freedom  are  always  arrayed  in 
opposition  to  each  other. 

At  the  time  of  the  Missouri  question,  the  pestiferous  effects 
of  slavery  had  become  too  obvious  to  escape  the  observation 
of  the  most  superficial  statesman.  The  new  free  States  ad- 
mitted into  the  Union  enjoyed  tenfold  prosperity  compared 
with  the  new  slave  States.  Give  a  free  laborer  a  barren 
rock,  and  he  will  soon  cover  it  with  vegetation ;  while  the 
slave  and  his  task-master,  would  change  the  garden  of  Eden 
to  a  desert. 

But  Missouri  must  be  admitted  as  a  slave  State,  for  two 
strong  reasons.  First,  that  the  planters  might  perpetuate 
their  predominant  influence  by  adding  to  the  slave  represen- 
tation,— the  power  of  which  is  always  concentrated  against 
the  interests  of  the  free  States.  Second,  that  a  new  market 
might  be  opened  for  their  surplus  slaves.  It  is  lamentable 
to  think  that  two  votes  in  favor  of  Missouri  slavery,  were 
given  by  Massachusetts  men ;  and  that  those  two  votes  would 
have  turned  the  scale.  The  planters  loudly  threatened  to 
dissolve  the  Union,  if  slavery  were  not  extended  beyond  the 


POLITICS    OF    THE    UNITED    STATES.  12) 

Mississippi.  If  the  Union  cannot  be  preserved  without  crime, 
it  is  an  eternal  truth  that  nothing  good  can  be  preserved  by 
crime.  The  immense  territories  of  Louisiana,  Arkansas, 
and  Florida,  are  very  likely  to  be  formed  into  slave  States ; 
and  every  new  vote  on  this  side,  places  the  free  States  more 
and  more  at  the  mercy  of  the  South,  and  gives  a  renewed 
and  apparently  interminable  lease  to  the  duration  of  slavery. 

The  purchase  or  the  conquest  of  the  Texas,  is  a  favorite 
scheme  with  Southerners,  because  it  would  occasion  such  an 
inexhaustible  demand  for  slaves.  A  gentleman  in  the  Vir- 
ginia convention  thought  the  acquisition  of  the  Texas  so 
certain,  that  he  made  calculations  upon  the  increased  value 
of  negroes.  We  have  reason  to  thank  God  that  the  jeal- 
ousy of  the  Mexican  government  places  a  barrier  in  that 
direction. 

The  existence  of  slavery  among  us  prevents  the  recog- 
nition of  Haytian  independence.  That  republic  is  fast  in- 
creasing in  wealth,  intelligence  and  refinement. — Her  com- 
merce is  valuable  to  us  and  might  become  much  more  so. 
But  our  Northern  representatives  have  never  even  made  an 
effort  to  have  her  independence  acknowledged,  because  a 
colored  ambassador  would  be  so  disagreeable  to  our  preju- 
dices. 

Few  are  aware  of  the  extent  of  sectional  dislike  in  this 
country;  and  I  would  not  speak  of  it,  if  I  thought  it  pos. 
sible  to  add  to  it.  The  late  John  Taylor,  a  man  of  great 
natural  talent,  wrote  a  book  on  the  agriculture  of  Virginia, 
in  which  he  acknowledges  impoverishment,  but  attributes  it 
all  to  the  mismanagement  of  overseers.  In  this  work,  Mr. 
Taylor  has  embodied  more  of  the  genuine  spirit,  the  ethics 
and  politics,  of  planters,  than  any  other  man  ;  excepting 
perhaps,  John  Randolph  in  his  speeches.  He  treats  mer- 
chants, capitalists,  bankers,  and  all  other  people  not  planters, 
as  so  many  robbers,  who  live  by  plundering  the  slave-owner, 
apparently  forgetting  by  what  plunder  they  themselves  live. 

Mr.  Jefferson  and  other  eminent  men  from  the  Southj 
have  occasionally  betrayed  the  same  strong  prejudices  ;  but 
they  were  more  guarded,  lest  the  democracy  of  the  North 
should  be  undeceived,  and  their  votes  lost.  Mr.  Taylor's 
book  is  in  high  repute  in  the  Southern  States,  and  its  senti- 
ments widely  echoed  ;  but  it  is  little  known  here. 

A  year  or  two  since,  I  received  a  letter  from  a  publisher 
who  largely  supplies  the  Southern  market,  in  which  he  as- 

11 


122         INFLUENCE  OF  SLAVERY,  ETC. 

sured  me  that  no  book  from  the  North  would  sell  at  the 
South,  unless  the  source  from  which  it  came,  were  carefully 
concealed  !  Yet  New-England  has  always  yielded  to  South- 
ern  policy  in  preference  to  uniting  with  the  Middle  States, 
with  which  she  has,  in  most  respects,  a  congeniality  of  in- 
terests and  habits.  It  has  been  the  constant  policy  of  the 
slave  States  to  prevent  the  free  States  from  acting  together. 

Who  does  not  see  that  the  American  people  are  walking 
over  a  subterranean  fire,  the  flames  of  which  are  fed  by 
slavery  ? 

The  South  no  doubt  gave  her  influence  to  General  Jack- 
son, from  the  conviction  that  a  slave-owner  would  support 
the  slaveholding  interest.  The  Proclamation  against  the 
nullifiers,  which  has  given  the  President  such  sudden  popu- 
larity at  the  North,  has  of  course  offended  them.  No  per- 
son has  a  right  to  say  that  Proclamation  is  insincere.  It 
will  be  extraordinary  if  a  slave-owner  does  in  reality  depart 
from  the  uniform  system  of  his  brethren.  In  the  President's 
last  Message,  it  is  maintained  that  the  wealthy  landholders, 
that  is,  the  planters,  are  the  best  part  of  the  population  ;-— - 
it  admits  that  the  laws  for  raising  of  revenue  by  imposts 
have  been  in  their  operation  oppressive  to  the  South ; — it 
recommends  a  gradual  withdrawing  of  protection  from  manu- 
factures ; — it  advises  that  the  public  lands  shall  cease  to  be 
a  source  of  revenue,  as  soon  as  practicable — that  they  be 
sold  to  settlers — and  in  a  convenient  time  the  disposal  of  the 
soil  be  surrendered  to  the  States  respectively  in  which  it  lies ; 
— lastly,  the  Message  tends  to  discourage  future  appropria- 
tions of  public  money  for  purposes  of  internal  improvement. 

Every  one  of  these  items  is  a  concession  to  the  slave- 
holding  policy.  If  the  public  lands  are  taken  from  the  na- 
tion, and  given  to  the  States  in  which  the  soil  lies,  who  will 
get  the  largest  share  ?  That  best  part  of  the  population 
called  planters. 

The  Proclamation  and  the  Message  are  very  unlike  each 
other.  Perhaps  South  Carolina  is  to  obtain  her  own  will  by 
a  route  more  certain,  though  more  circuitous,  than  open  re- 
bellion. Time  will  show. 


COLONIZATION    SOCIETY,    ETC.  123 


CHAPTER   V. 

COLONIZATION  SOCIETY,  AND  ANTI-SLAVERY  SOCIETY. 


It  is  not  madness 

That  I  have  utter'd  :•> For  love  of  grace, 

Lay  not  that  flattering  unction  to  your  soul, 

That  not  your  trespass -but  my  madness  speaks  : 

It  will  but  skin  and  film  the  ulcerous  place  ; 

While  rank  corruption,  mining  all  within, 

Infects  unseen.     Confess  yourself  to  Heaven  ; 

Repent  what's  past ;  avoid  what  is  to  come  ; 

And  do  not  spread  the  compost  on  the  weeds, 

To  make  them  ranker.  HAMLET,  Act  III,  Scene  3d. 

When  doctrines  meet  with  general  approbation, 

It  is  not  heresy,  but  reformation.  GARBICK. 


So  much  excitement  prevails  with  regard  to  these  two 
societies  at  present,  that  it  will  be  difficult  to  present  a  view  of 
them  which  will  be  perfectly  satisfactory  to  all.  I  shall  say 
what  appears  to  me  to  be  candid  and  true,  without  any  anx- 
iety as  to  whom  it  may  please,  and  whom  it'  may  displease. 
I  need  not  say  that  I  have  a  decided  predilection,  because  it 
has  been  sufficiently  betrayed  in  the  preceding  pages ;  and 
I  allude  to  it  for  the  sake  of  perfect  sincerity,  rather  than 
from  any  idea  that  my  opinion  is  important. 

The  American  Colonization  Society  was  organized  a  little 
more  than  sixteen  years  ago  at  the  city  of  Washington,  cho- 
sen as  the  most  central  place  in  the  Union.  Auxiliary  in- 
stitutions  have  since  been  formed  in  almost  every  part  of  the 
country  ;  and  nearly  all  the  distinguished  men  belong  to  it. 
The  doing  away  of  slavery  in  the  United  States,  by  gradu- 
ally removing  all  the  blacks  to  Africa,  has  been  generally 
supposed  to  be  its  object.  The  project  at  first  excited  some 
jealousy  in  the  Southern  States  ;  and  the  Society,  in  order 
to  allay  this,  were  anxious  to  make  all  possible  concessions 
to  slave-owners,  in  their  Addresses,  Reports,  &c.  In  Mr. 
Clay's  speech, 'printed  in  the  first  Annual  Report  of  the  So- 
ciety, he  said,  "  It  is  far  from  the  intention  of  this  Society  to 
affect,  in  any  manner,  the  tenure  by  which  a -certain  species 
ef  property  is  held.  I  am  myself  a  slaveholder,  and  I  con 


124  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY* 

sider  that  kind  of  property  as  inviolable  as  any  other  in  th6 
country.  I  would  resist  encroachment  upon  it  as  soon,  and 
with  as  much  firmness,  as  I  would  upon  any  other  property 
that  I  hold.  Nor  am  1  prepared  to  go  as  far  as  the  gentle- 
man  who  has  just  spoken,  (Mr.  Mercer)  in  saying  that  I 
would  emancipate  my  slaves,  if  the  means  were  provided  of 
sending  them  from  the  country. " 

At  the  same  meeting  Mr.  Randolph  said,  "  He  thought  it 
necessary  >  being  himself  a  slaveholder,  to  show  that  so  far 
from  being  in  the  smallest  degree  connected  with  the  aboli- 
tion of  slavery,  the  proposed  Society  would  prove  one  of  ike 
greatest  securities  to  enable  the  master  to  keep  in  possession 
his  own  property." 

In  Mr.  Clay's  speech,  in  the  second  Annual  Report,  he 
declares  :  "  It  is  not  proposed  to  deliberate  upon,  or  con. 
eider  at  all,  any  question  of  emancipation,  or  any  that  is 
connected  with  the  abolition  of  slavery.  On  this  condition 
alone  gentlemen  from  the  South  and  West  can  be  expected  to 
co-operate.  On  this  condition  only,-!  have  myself  a  tended." 

In  the  seventh  Annual  Report  it  is  said,  "  An  effort  for 
the  benefit  of  the  blacks,  in  which  all  parts  of  the  country 
can  unite,  of  course  must  not  have  the  abolition  of  slavery 
for  its  immediate  object ;  nor  may  it  aim  directly  at  the  in- 
struction of  the  blacks." 

Mr.  Archer,  of  Virginia,  fifteenth  Annual  Report,  soys : 
"  The  object  of  the  Society,  if  I  understand  it  aright,  involves 
no  intrusion  on  property,  nor  even  upon  prejudice." 

In  the  speech  of  James  S.  Green,  Esq.  he  says  :  "  This 
Society  have  ever  disavowed,  and  they  do  yet  disavow  that 
their  object  is  the  emancipation  of  slaves.  They  have  no 
wish  if  they  could  to  interfere  in  the  smallest  degree  with 
what  they  deem  the  most  interesting  and  fearful  subject- 
which  can  be  pressed  upon  the  American  public.  There  is 
no  people  that  treat  their  slaves  with  so  much  kindness  and 
so  little  cruelty." 

In  almost  every  address  delivered  before  the  Society, 
similar  expressions  occur.  On  the  propriety  of  discussing 
the  evils  of  slavery,  without  bitterness  and  without  fear, 
good  men  may  differ  in  opinion  ;  though  I  think  the  time  is 
fast  coming,  when  they  will  all  agree.  But  by  assuming 
the  ground  implied  in  the  above  remarks,  the  Colonization 
Society  have  fallen  into  the  habit  of  glossing  over  the  enor- 
mities of  the  slave  system ;  at  least,  it  so  appears  to  me. 


AND   ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  125 

In  their  constitution  they  have  pledged  themselves  not  to 
speak,  write,  or  do  anything  to  offend  the  Southerners ;  and 
as  there  is  no  possible  way  of  making  the  truth  pleasant 
to  those  who  do  not  love  it,  the  Society  must  perforce 
keep  the  truth  out  of  sight.  .In  many  of  their  publications, 
I  have  thought  I  discovered  a  lurking  tendency  to  palliate 
slavery  ;  or,  at  least  to  make  the  best  of  it.  They  often 
bring  to  my  mind  the  words  of  Hamlet : 

" Forgive  me  this  my  virtue; 
For  in  the  fatness  of  these  pursy  times, 
Virtue  itself  of  vice  must  pardon  beer  • 
Yea,  curb  and  woo,  for  leave  to  do  him  good." 

Thus  in  an  Address  delivered  March,  1833,  we  are  told, 
"  It  ought  never  to  be  forgotten  that  the  slave-trade  between 
Africa  and  America,  had  its  origin  in  a  compassionate  en- 
deavor to  relieve,  by  the  substitution  of  negro  labor,  the  toils 
'endured  by  native  Indians.  It  was  the  simulated  form  of 
mercy  that  piloted  the  first  slave-ship  across  the  Atlantic." 

I  am  aware  that  Las  Cases  used  'this  argument ;  but  it  was 
less  unbecoming  in  him  than  it  is  in  a  philanthropist  of  the 
present  day.  The  speaker  does  indeed  say  that  "  the  '  infi- 
nite of  agonies'  and  the  infinite  of  crime,  since  suffered  and 
~ committed,  proves  that  mercy  cannot  exist  in  opposition  to 
justice."  I  can  hardly  realize  what  sort  of  a  conscience  it 
must  be,  that  needed  the  demonstration. 

The  plain  truth  was,  the  Spaniards  were  in  a  hurry  for 
gpld  ;  they  overworked  the  native  Indians,  who  were  incon- 
siderate enough  to  die  in  very  inconvenient  numbers  ;  but 
the  gold  must  be  had,  and  that  quickly  ;  and  so  the  Africans 
were  forced  to  come  and  die  in  company  with  the  Indians. 
And  in  the  nineteenth  century,  we  are  told  it  is  our  duty  not 
to  forget  that  this  was  a  "  simulated  form  of  mercy !"  A 
eftssimulated  form  would  have  been  the  better  expression. 

If  we  may  believe  slave-owners,  the  whole  system,  from 
beginning  to  end,  is  a  matter  of  mercy.  They  have  de- 
scribed the  Middle  Passage,  with  its  gags,  fetters,  and  thumb* 
screws,  as  "the  happiest  period  of  a  negro's  life ;"  they  say 
they  do  the  slaves  a  great  charity  in  bringing  them  from 
barbarous  Africa  to  a  civilized  and  Christian  country  ;  and 
on  the  plantation,  under  the  whip  of  the  driver,  the  negroes 
are  so  happy,  that  a  West  India  planter  publicly  declared 
he  could  not  look  upon  them,  without  wishing  to  be  himself 
a  slave. 

11* 


126  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

In  the  speech  above  referred  to*  we  are  told,  that  as  to 
any  political  interference,  "  the  slave  States  are  foreign 
States.  We  can  alienate  their  feelings  until  they  become 
foreign  enemies ;  or,  on  the  other  hand,  we  can  conciliate 
them  until  they  become  allies  and  auxiliaries  in  the  sacred 
cause  of  emancipation." 

But  so  long  as  the  South  insist  that  slavery  is  unavoidable, 
and  say  they  will  not  tolerate  any  schemes  tending  to  its 
abolition — and  so  long  as  the  North  take  the  necessity  of 
slavery  for  an  unalterable  truth,  and  put  down  any  discus* 
sions,  however  mild  and  candid,  which  tend  to  show  that  it 
may  be  done  away  with  safety — so  long  as  we  thus  strengthen 
each  other's  hands  in  evil,  what  remote  hope  is  there  t>f 
emancipation  ?  If  by  political  interference  is  meant  hostile 
interference,  or  even  a  desire  to  promote  insurrection,  I 
should  at  once  pronounce  it  to  be  most  wicked  ;  but  if  by 
political  interference  is  meant  the  liberty  to  investigate  this 
subject,  as  other  subjects  are  investigated — to  inquire  into 
what  has  been  done,  and  what  may  be  done — I  say  it  is  our 
eacred  duty  to  do  it.  To  enlighten  public  opinion  is  the  best 
way  that  has  yet  been  discovered  for  the  removal  of  national 
evils  ;  and  slavery  is  certainly  a  national  evil. 

The  Southern  States,  according  to  their  own  evidence,  are 
impoverished  by  it ;  a  great  amount  of  wretchedness  and 
crime  inevitably  follows  in  its  train ;  the  prosperity  of  the 
North  is  continually  checked  by  it ;  it  promotes  feelings  of 
rivalry  between  the  States  ;  it  separates  our  interests  ;  makes 
our  councils  discordant ;  threatens  the  destruction  of  our 
government ;  and  disgraces  us  in  the  eyes  of  the  world.  I 
have  often  heard  Americans  who  have  been  abroad,  declare 
that  nothing  embarrassed  them  so  much  as  being  questioned 
about  our  slaves  ;  and  that  nothing  was  so  mortifying  as  to 
have  the  pictures  of  runaway  negroes  pointed  at  in  the 
newspapers  of  this  republic.  La  Fayette,  with  all  his  ad- 
miration  for  our  institutions,  can  never  speak  of  the  subject 
without  regret  and  shame. 

Now  a  common  evil  certainly  implies  a  common  right  to 
remedy  ;  and  where  is  the  remedy  to  be  found,  if  the  South 
fn  all  their  speeches  and  writings  repeat  that  slavery  must 
exist — if  the  Colonization  Society  re-echo,  in  all  their  Ad- 
presses  and  Reports,  that  there  is  no  help  for  the  evil,  and 
ft  is  very  wicked  to  hint  that  there  is — and  if  public  opinion 
here  brands  every  body  as  a  fanatic  and  madman,  who 


AND    ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  127 

wishes  to  inquire  what  can  be  done?  The  supineness  of 
New-England  on  this  subject,  reminds  me  of  the  man  who 
being  asked  to  work  at  the  pump,  because  the  vessel  was 
going  down,  answered,  "  I  am  only  a  passenger." 

An  error  often  and  urgently  repeated  is  apt  to  receive  the 
sanction  of  truth  ;  and  so  it  is  in  this  case.  The  public 
take  it  for  granted  that  slavery  is  a  "lamentable  necessity." 
Nevertheless  there  is  a  way  to  effect  its  cure,  if  we  all  join 
sincerely,  earnestly,  and  kindly  in  the  work  ;  but  if  we  ex. 
pend  our  energies  in  palliating  the  evil,  or  mourning  over  its 
hopelessness,  or  quarrelling  about  who  is  the  most  to  blame 
for  it,  the  vessel. — crew,  passengers,  and  all, — will  go  down 
together. 

I  object  to  the  Colonization  Society,  because  it  tends  to 
put  public  opinion  asleep,  on  a  subject  where  it  needs  to  be 
wide  awake. 

The  address  above  alluded  to,  does  indeed  inform  us  of 
one  thing  which  we  are  at  liberty  to  do  :  "We  must  go  to 
the  master  and  adjure  him,  by  all  the  sacred  rights  of 
humanity,  by  ail  the  laws  of  natural  justice,  by  his  dread 
responsibilities, — which,  in  the  economy  of  Providence,  are 
always  co-extensive  and  commensurate  with  power, — to  raise 
the  slave  out  of  his  abyss  of  degradation,  to  give  him  a  par. 
ticipation  in  the  benefits  of  mortal  existence,  and  to  make 
him  a  member  of  the  intellectual  and  moral  world,  from 
which  he,  and  his  fathers,  for  so  many  generations,  have 
been  exiled."  The  practical  utility  of  such  a  plan  needs  no 
comment.  Slave-owners  will  smile  when  they  read  it. 

I  will  for  a  moment  glance  at  what  many  suppose  is  still 
the  intention  of  the  Colonization  Society,  viz.,  gradually  to 
remove  all  the  blacks  in  the  United  States.  The  Society 
has  been  in  operation  more  than  fifteen  years,  during  which 
it  has  transported  between  two  and  three  thousand  free 
people  of  color.  There  are  in  the  United  States  two  million 
of  slaves  and  three  hundred  thousand  free  blacks  ;  and  their 
numbers  are  increasing  at  the  rate  of  seventy  thousand  an. 
nually.  While  the  Society  have  removed  less  than  three 
thousand, — five  hundred  thousand  have  been  born.  While 
one  hundred  and  fifty  free  blacks  have  been  sent  to  Africa 
in  a  year,  two  hundred  slaves  have  been  born  in  a  day.  To 
keep  the  evil  just  where  it  is,  seventy  thousand  a  year  must 
be  transported.  How  many  ships,  and  how  many  millions 
of  money,  would  it  require  to  do  this  1  It  would  cost  three 


128  COLONIZATION 

million  five  hundred  thousand  dollars  a  year,  to  provide  for 
the  safety  of  our  Southern  brethren  in  this  way  !"  To  use  the 
language  of  Mr.  Hayne,  it  would  "  bankrupt  the  treasury  of 
the  world"  to  execute  the  scheme.  And  if  such  a  great 
number  could  be  removed  annually,  how  would  the  poor 
fellows  subsist  ?  Famines  have  already  been  produced  even 
by  the  few  that  have  been  sent.  What  would  be  the  result 
of  landing  several  thousand  destitute  beings,  even  on  the 
most  fertile  of  our  own  cultivated  shores  ? 

And  why  should  they  be  removed?  Labor  is  greatly 
needed,  and  we  are  glad  to  give  good  wages  for  it.  We 
encourage  emigration  from  all  parts  of  the  world ;  why  is 
it  not  good  policy,  as  well  as  good  feeling,  to  improve  the 
colored  people,  and  pay  them  for  the  use  of  their  faculties  ? 
For  centuries  to  come,  the  means  of  sustenance  in  this  vast 
country  must  be  much  greater  than  the  population ;  then 
why  should  we  drive  away  people,  whose  services  may  be 
most  useful  ?  If  the  moral  cultivation  of  negroes  received  the 
attention  it  ought,  thousands  and  thousands  would  at  the 
present  moment  be  gladly  taken  up  in  families,  factories,  &c. 
And,  like  other  men,  they  ought  to  be  allowed  to  fit  them- 
selves for  more  important  usefulness,  as  far  and  as  fast  as 
they  can. 

There  will,  in  all  human  probability,  never  be  any  de- 
crease in  the  black  population  of  the  United  States.  Here 
they  are,  and  here  they  must  remain,  in  very -large  numbers, 
do  what  we  will.  We  may  at  once  agree  to  live  together 
in  mutual  good-will,  and  perform  a  mutual  use  to  each  other 
— or  we  may  go  on,  increasing  tyranny  on  one  side,  and 
jealousy  and  revenge  on  the  other,  until  the  fearful  elements 
complete  their  work  of  destruction,  and  something  better 
than  this  sinful  republic  rises  on  the  ruins.  Oh,  how  ear- 
nestly do  I  wish  that  we  may  choose  the  holier  and  safer  path ! 

To  transport  the  blacks  in  such  annual  numbers  as  has 
hitherto  been  done,  cannot  have  any  beneficial  effect  upon 
the  present  state  of  things.  It  is  Dame  Partington  with  her 
pail  mopping  up  the  rushing  waters  of  the  Atlantic  !  So  far 
as  this  gradual  removal  has  any  effect,  it  tends  to  keep  up 
the  price  of  slaves  in  the  market,  and  thus  perpetuate  the 
system.  A  writer  in  the  Kentucky  Luminary,  speaking 
of  colonization,  uses  the  following  argument :  "  None  are 
obliged  to  follow  our  example ;  and  those  who  do  not,  will  find 
the  value  of  their  negroes  increased  by  the  departure  of  ours." 


AND    ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  129 

If  the  value  of  slaves  is  kept  up,  it  will  be  a  strong  tempta- 
tion to  smuggle  in  the  commodity  ;  and  thus  while  one  ves- 
sel carries  them  out  from  America,  another  will  be  bringing 
them  in  from  Africa.  This  would  be  like  dipping  up  the 
water  of  Chesapeake  Bay  into  barrels,  conveying  it  across 
the  Atlantic,  and  emptying  it  into  the  Mediterranean  :  the 
Chesapeake  would  remain  as  full  as  ever,  and  by  the  time 
the  vessel  returned,  wind  and  waves  would  have  brought  the 
same  water  back  again. 

Slave-owners  have  never  yet,  in  any  part  of  the  world, 
been  known  to  favor,  as  a  body,  any  scheme,  which  could 
ultimately  tend  to  abolish  slavery  ;  yet  in  this  country,  they 
belong  to  the  Colonization  Society  in  large  numbers,  and 
agree  to  pour  from  their  State  treasuries  into  its  funds.  In- 
dividuals  object  to  it,  it  is  true ;  but  the  scheme  is  very 
generally  favored  in  the  slave  States* 

The  following  extract  from  Mr.  Wood's  speech  in  the 
Legislature  of  Virginia,  will  show  upon  what  ground  the 
owners  of  slaves  are  willing  to  sanction  any  schemes  of  be- 
nevolence. The  "Colonization  Society  maybe  a  part,  of 
the  grand  system  of  the  Ruler  of  the  Universe,  to  provide 
for  the  transfer  of  negroes  to  their  mother  country.  Their 
introduction  into  this  land  may  have  been  one  of  the  inscruta- 
ble ways  of  Providence  to  confer  blessings  upon  that  race — 
it  may  have  been  decreed  that  they  shall  be  the  means  of 
•conveying  to  the  minds  of  their  benighted  countrymen,  the 
blessing  of  religious  and  civil  liberty.  But  I  fear  there  is 
little  ground  to  believe  the  means  have  yet  been  created  to 
effect  so  glorious  a  result,  or  that  the  ^present  race  of  slaves 
mre  to  be  benefited  by  such  a  removal.  /  shall  trust  that 
many  of  them  may  be  carried  to  the  south-western  States  as 
slaves.  Should  this  door  be  closed,  how  can  Virginia  get 
rid  of  so  large  a  number  as  are  now  annually  deported  to  the 
different  States  and  Territories  where  slaves  are  wanted? 
Can  the  gentleman  show  us  how  from  twelve  thousand  to 
twenty  thousand  can  be  annually  carried  to  Liberia  ?" 

Yet  notwithstanding  such  numbers  of  mothers  and  children 
arc  yearly  sent  from  a  single  State,  "  separately  or  in  lots," 
to  supply  the  demands  of  the  internal  slave-trade,  Mr.  Hayne, 
speaking  of  freeing  these  people  and  sending  them  away, 
says :  "  It  is  wholly  irreconcilable  with  our  notions  of  hu- 
-tnanity  to  tear  asunder  the  tender  ties,  which  they  had  formed 
•*mong  us  to  gratify  the  feelings  of  a  false  philanthropy !" 


130  -COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

As  for  the  removal  of  blacks  from  this  country,  the  1'eal 
fact  is  this  ;  the  slave  States  are  very  desirous  to  get  rid  of 
their  troublesome  surplus  of  colored  population,  and  they 
are  willing  that  we  should  help  to  pay  for  the  transportation. 
A  double  purpose  is  served  by  this ;  for  the  active  benevo- 
lence which  is  eager  to  work  in  the  cause,  is  thus  turned 
into  a  harmless  and  convenient,  channel.  Neither  th$ 
planters  nor  the  Colonization  Society,  seem  to  ask  what 
right  we  have  to  remove  people  from  the  places-ivhere  they 
have  been  born  and  brought  up, — where  they  have  a  home» 
which,  however  miserablej  is  still  their  home, — and  where 
their  relatives  and  acquaintances  all  reside.  Africa  is  no 
more  their  native  country  than  England  is  ours,* — nay,  it  is 
less  so,  because  there  is  no  community  of  language  or  habits ; 
— besides,  we  cannot  say  to  them,  as  Gilpin  said  to  his  horse, 
"  Twas  for  your  pleasure  you  came  here,  you  shall  go  back 
for  mine." 

In  the  Virginia  debate  of  1832,  it  was  agreed  that  very 
few  of  the  free  colored  people  would  be  willing  to  go  to 
Africa ;  and  this  is  proved  by  several  petitions  from  them, 
praying  for  leave  to  remain.  One  of  the  Virginian  legisla- 
tors said,  "either  moral  or  physical  force  must  be  used  to 
compel  them  to  go;"  some  of  them  advised  immediate  coer- 
cion ;  others  recommended  persuasion  first,  until  their  num- 
bers were  thinned,  and  coercion  afterward.  I  believe  th« 
resolution  finally  passed  the  House  without  any  proviso  of 
this  sort ;  and  I  mention  it  merely  to  show  that  it  was  gen- 
erally  supposed  the  colored  people  would  be  unwilling  to  go. 

The  planters  are  resolved  to  drive  the  free  blacks  away ; 
and  it  is  another  evil  of  the  Colonization  Society  that  their 
funds  and  their  influence  co-operate  with  them  in  this  pro- 
ject. They  do  not  indeed  thrust  the  free  negroes  off,  at  the 
point  of  the  bayonet ;  but  they  make  their  laws  and  customs 
so  very  unequal  and  oppressive,  that  the  poor  fellows  are 
surrounded  by  raging  fires  OH  every  side,  and  must  leap 
into  the  Atlantic  for  safety.  In  slave  ethics  I  suppose  this 
is  called  "  moral  force."  If  the  slave  population  is  left  to 
its  own  natural  increase,  the  crisis  will  soon  come ;  for  labor 

*  At  the  close  of  the  last  war,  General  Jackson  issued  a  proclamation 
to  the  colored  people  of  the  South,  in  which  he  says :  "  I  knew  that  you 
loved  the  land  of  your  nativity,  and  that,  like  ourselves,  you  had  to  defend 
uJl  that  is  dear  to  man.  But  you  surpass  my  hopes.  I  have  found  in 
you,  united  to  those  qualities,  that  noble  enthusiasm  which  impels 
deeds." 


AND    ANTI-SLAVERY 'SOCIETY.  131 

will  be  so  very  cheap  that  slavery  will  not  be  for  the  interest 
of  the  whites.  Why  should  we  retard  this  crisis  ? 

In  the  next  place,  many  of  the  Colonizationists  (I  do  not 
suppose  it  applies  to  all)  are  averse  to  giving  the  blacks  a 
good  education  ;  and  they  are  not  friendly  to  the  establish- 
ment  of  schools  and  colleges  for  that  purpose.  Now  I  would 
ask  any  candid  person  why  colored  children  should  not  be 
educated  1  Some  say,  it  will  raise  them  above  their  situa- 
tion ;  I  answer,  it  will  raise  them  in  their  situation — not 
above  it.  When  a  High  School  for  white  girls  was  first 
talked  of  in  this  city,  several  of  the  wealthy  class  objected 
to  it;  because,  said  they,  "if  everybody  is  educated,  we 
shall  have  no  servants."  This  argument  is  based  on  selfish, 
ness,  and  therefore  cannot  stand.  If  carried  into  operation, 
the  welfare  of  many  would  be  sacrificed  to  the  convenience 
of  a  few.  We  might  as  well  protest  against  the  sunlight, 
for  the  benefit  of  lamp-oil  merchants.  Of  all  monopolies,  a 
monopoly  of  knowledge  is  the  worst.  Let  it  be  as  active  as 
the  ocean — as  free  as  the  wind — as  universal  as  the  sun- 
beams !  Lord  Brougham  said  very  wisely,  "  If  the  higher 
classes  are  afraid  of  being  left  in  the  rear,  they  likewise 
must  hasten  onward." 

With  our  firm,  belief  in  the  natural  inferiority  of  negroes, 
it  is  strange  we  should  be  so  much  afraid  that  knowledge 
will  elevate  them  quite  too  high  for  our  convenience.  In  the 
march  of  improvement,  we  are  several  centuries  in  advance ; 
and  if,  with  this  obstacle  at  the  very  beginning,  they  can  out- 
strip  us,  why  then,  in  the  name  of  justice,  let  them  go  ahead  ! 
Nay,  give  them  three  cheers  as  they  pass.  If  any  nation, 
or  any  class  of  men,  can  obtain  intellectual  pre-eminence,  it 
is  a  sure  sign,  they  deserve  it;  and  by  this  republican  rule 
the  condition  of  the  world  will  be  regulated  as  surely  as  the 
waters  find  their  level. 

Besides,  like  all  selfish  policy,  this  is  not  true  policy.  The 
more  useful  knowledge  a  person  has,  the  better  he  fulfils  his 
duties  in  any  station ;  and  there  is  no  kind  of  knowledge, 
high  or  low,  which  may  not  be  brought  into.  use. 

But  it  has  been  said,  that  information  will  make  the  blacks 
discontented ;  because,  if  ever  so  learned,  they  will  not  be 
allowed  to  sit  at  the  white  man's  table,  or  marry  the  white 
man's  daughter. 

In  relation  to  this  question,  I  would  ask,  "  Is  there  any- 
body so  high,  that  they  do  not  see  others  above  them?" 


132  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

The  working  classes  of  this  country  have  no  social  commit 
nication  with  the  aristocracy.  Every  day  of  my  life  I  see 
people  who  can  dress  better,  and  live  in  better  houses,  than 
I  can  afford.  There  are  many  individuals  who  would  not 
choose  to  make  my  acquaintance,  because  I  am  not  of  their 
caste — but  I  should  speak  a  great  untruth,  if  I  said  this  made 
me  discontented.  They  have  their  path  and  I  have  mine  ; 
I  am  happy  in  my  own  way,  and  am  willing  they  should  be 
happy  in  theirs.  If  asked  whether  what  little  knowledge  I 
have  produces  discontent,  I  should  answer,  that  it  made  me 
happier,  infinitely  happier,  than  I  could  be  without  it. 

Under  every  form  of  government,  there  will  be  distinct 
classes  of  society,  which  have  only  occasional  and  transient 
communication  with  each  other ;  and  the  colored  people, 
whether  educated  or  not,  will  form  one  of  these  classes. 
By  giving  them  means  of  information,  we  increase  their  hap- 
piness, and  make  them  better  members  of  society.  I  have 
often  heard  it  said  that  there  was  a  disproportionate  number 
of  crimes  committed  by  the  colored  people  in  this  State. 
The  same  thing  is  true  of  the  first  generation  of  Irish  emi- 
grants; but  we  universally  attribute  it  to  their  ignorance, 
and  agree  that  the  only  remedy  is  to  give  their  children  as 
good  an  education  as  possible.  If  the  policy  is  wise  in  one 
instance,  why  would  it  not  be  so  in  the  other ! 

As  for  the  possibility  of  social  intercourse  between  the  dif- 
ferent colored  races,  /  have  not  the  slightest  objection  to  it, 
provided  they  were  equally  virtuous,  and  equally  intelligent ; 
but  I  do  not  wish  to  war  with  the  prejudices  of  others  ;  I  am 
willing  that  all,  who  consult  their  consciences,  should  keep 
them  as  long  as  ever  they  can.  One  thing  is  certain,  the 
blacks  will  never  come  into  your  houses,  unless  you  ask 
them  ;  and  you  need  not  ask  them  unless  you  choose,  They 
are  very  far  from  being  intrusive  in  this  respect. 

With  regard  to  marrying  your  daughters,  I  believe  the 
feeling  in  opposition  to  such  unions  is  quite  as  strong  among 
the  colored  class,  as  it  is  among  white  people.  While  the 
prejudice  exists,  such  instances  must  be  exceedingly  rare, 
because  the  consequence  is  degradation  in  society.  Believe 
me,  you  may  safely  trust  to  any  thing  that  depends  on  the 
pride  and  selfishness  of  unregenerated  human  nature. 

Perhaps,  a  hundred  years  hence,  some  negro  Rothschild 
may  come  from  Hayti,  with  his  seventy  million  of  pounds, 
and  persuade  some  white  woman  to  sacrifice  herself  to  him. 


AND    ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  133 

—-Stranger  things  than  this  do  happen  every  year. — But 
before  that  century  has  passed  away,  I  apprehend  there  will 
be  a  sufficient  number  of  well-informed  and  elegant  colored 
women  in  the  world,  to  meet  the  demands  of  colored  patricians. 
Let  the  sons  and  daughters  of  Africa  both  be  educated,  and 
then  they  will  be  fit  for  each  other.  They  will  not  be  forced 
to  make  war  upon  their  white  neighbors  for  wives :  nor  will 
they,  if  they  have  intelligent  women  of  their  own,  see  any 
thing  so  very  desirable  in  the  project.  Shall  we  keep  this 
class  of  people  in  everlasting  degradation,  for  fear  one  of 
their  descendants  may  marry  our  great-great- great-great- 
grandchild ? 

While  the  prejudice  exists, such  unions  cannot  take  place; 
and  when  the  prejudice  is  melted  away,  they  will  cease  to  be 
a  degradation,  and  of  course  cease  to  be  an  evil. 

My  third  and  greatest  objection  to  the  Colonization  Society 
is,  that  its  members  write  and  speak,  both  in  public  and  pri. 
vate,  as  if  the  prejudice  against  skins  darker  colored  than 
our  own,  was  a  fixed  and  unalterable  law  of  our  nature* 
which  cannot  possibly  be  changed.  The  very  existence  of 
the  Society  is  owing  to  this  prejudice :  for  if  we  could  make 
all  the  colored  people  white,  or  if  they  could  be  viewed  as 
impartially  as  if  they  were  white,  what  would  be  left  for  the 
Colonization  Society  to  do  ?  Under  such  circumstances, 
they  would  have  a  fair  chance  to  rise  in  their  moral  and  in- 
tellectual character,  and  we  should  be  glad  to  have  them 
remain  among  us,  to  give  their  energies  for  our  money,  as 
the  Irish,  the  Dutch,  and  people  from  all  parts  of  the  world 
are  now  doing. 

I  am  aware  that  some  of  the  Colonizationists  make  large 
professions  on  this  subject;  but  nevertheless  we  are  con- 
stantly told  by  this  Society,  that  people  of  color  must  be  re- 
moved, not  only  because  they  are  in  our  way,  but  because 
they  must  always  be  in  a  state  of  degradation  here — that 
they  never  can  have  all  the  rights  and  privileges  of  citizens 
— and  all  this  is  because  the  prejudice  is  so  gveat. 

"  The  managers  consider  it  clear  that  causes  exist  and 
are  operating  to  prevent  their  (the  blacks)  improvement  and 
elevation  to  any  considerable  extent  as  a  class,  in  this  coun- 
try, which  are  fixed,  not  only  beyond  the  control  of  the 
friends  of  humanity,  but  of  any  human  power.  Christianity 
will  not  do  for  them  here,  what  it  will  do  for  them  in  Africa* 
This  is  not  the  fault  of  the  colored  man,  nor  Christianity 

12 


134  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

but  an  ordination  of  Providence,  and  no  more  to  be  changed 
than  the  laws  of  Nature  !" — Last  Annual  Report  of  Ameri- 
can Colonization  Society. 

"  "  The  habits,  the  feelings,  all  the  prejudices  of  society— 
prejudices  which  neither  refinement,  nor  argument,  nor  edu* 
cation,  NOR  RELIGION  ITSELF,  can  subdue — mark  the  ppople 
of  color,  whether  bond  or  free,  as  the  subjects  of  degradation 
inevitable  and  incurable.  The  African  in  this  country  be- 
longs  by  birth  to  the  very  lowest  station  in  society;  and  from 
that  station  HE  CAN  NEVER  RISE,  be  his  talents,  his  enferpriset 
Ms  virtues,  what  they  may.  They  constitute  a  class  by  them* 
selves — a  class  out  of  which  no  individual  can  be  e/evated, 
and  below  which  none  can  be  depressed." — African  Reposi- 
tory, vol.  iv,  pp.  118,  119. 

.  This  is  shaking  hands  with  iniquity,  and  covering  sin  with 
a  silver  veil.  Our  prejudice  against  the  blacks  is  founded 
in  sheer  pride ;  and  it  originates  in  the  circumstance  that 
people  of  their  color  only,  are  universally  allowed  to  be  slaves. 
We  made  slavery,  and  slavery  makes  the  prejudice.  No 
Christian,  who  questions  his  own  conscience,  can  justify  him- 
self in  indulging  the  feeling.  The  removal  of  this  prejudice 
is  not  a  matter  of  opinion — it  is  a  matter  of  duty.  We  have 
no  right  to  palliate  a  feeling,  sinful  in  itself,  and  highly  in- 
jurious to  a  large  number  of  our  fellow-beings.  Let  us  no 
longer  act  upon  the  narrow-minded  idea,  that  we  must  al- 
ways continue  to  do  wrong,  because  ws  have  so  long  been 
in  the  habit  of  doing  it.  That  there  is  no  necessity  for  the 
prejudice  is  shown  by  facts.  In  England,  it  exists  to  a  much 
less  degree  than  it  does  here.  If  a  respectable  colored  per- 
son enters  a  church  there,  the  pews  are  readily  opened  to 
him ;  if  he  appears  at  an  inn,  room  is  made  for  him  at  the* 
table,  and  no  laughter,  or  winking,  reminds  him  that  he  be- 
longs  to  an  outcast  race.  A  highly  respectable  English 
gentleman  residing  in  this  country  has  often  remarked  that 
nothing  filled  him  with  such  utter  astonishment  as  our  pre- 
judice with  regard  to  color.  There  is  now  in  old  England 
a  negro,  with  whose  name,  parentage,  and  history,  I  am 
well  acquainted,  who  was  sold  into  West  Indian  slavery  by 
his  New-England  master;  (I  know  his  name.)  The  unfor- 
tunate negro  became  free  by  the  kindness  of  an  individual, 
-and  has  now  a  handsome  little  property  and  the  command 
of  a  vessel.  He  must  take  care  not  to  come  into  the  ports 
of  our  Southern  republics !— The  anecdote  of  Prince  Saun- 


AND    ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  135 

ders  is  well  known  ;  but  it  will  bear  repeating.  He  called 
upon  an  American  family,  then  residing  in  London.  The 
fashionable  breakfast  hour  was  very  late,  and  the  family 
were  still  seated  at  the  table.  The  lady  fidgetted  between 
the  contending  claims  of  politeness  and  prejudice.  At  last, 
when  all  but  herself  had  risen  from  the  table,  she  said,  as  if 
struck  by  a  sudden  thought,  "  Mr.  Saunders,  I  forgot  to  ask 
if  you  had  breakfasted."  "  I  thank  you,  madam,"  replied 
the  colored  gentleman ;  "  but  I  have  engaged  to  breakfast 
with  the  Prince  Regent  this  morning." 

Mr.  Wilberforce  and  Mr.  Brougham  have  often  been  seen 
in  the  streets  of  London,  walking  arm  in  arm  with  people 
of  color.  The  same  thing  is  true  of  Brissot,  La  Fayette, 
and  several  other  distinguished  Frenchmen.  In  this  city,  I 
never  but  once  saw  such  an  instance :  When  the  Philadel- 
phia company  were  here  last  summer,  I  met  one  of  the  offi- 
cers walking  arm  in  arm  with  a  fine-looking  black  musician. 
The  circumstance  gave  me  a  good  deal  of  respect  for  the 
white  man ;  for  I  thought  he  must  have  kind  feelings  and 
correct  principles,  thus  fearlessly  to  throw  off  a  worse  than 
idle  prejudice. 

In  Brazil,  people  of  color  are  lawyers,  clergymen,  mefr- 
chants  and  military  officers;  and  in  the  Portuguese,  as  well 
as  the  Spanish  settlements,  intermarriages  bring  no  degra- 
dation. On  the  shores  of  the  Levant,  some  of  the  wealth- 
iest merchants  are  black.  If  we  were  accustomed  to  see 
intelligent  and  polished  negroes,  the  prejudice  would  soon 
disappear.  There  is  certainly  no  law  of  our  nature  which 
makes  a  dark  color  repugnant  to  our  feelings.  We  admire 
the  swarthy  beauties  of  Spain ;  and  the  finest  forms  of  stat- 
uary are  often  preferred  in  bronze.  If  the  whole  world 
were  allowed  to  vote  on  the  question,  there  would  probably 
be  a  plurality  in  favor  of  complexions  decidedly  dark.  Every 
body  knows  how  much  the  Africans  were  amused  at  the  sight 
of  Mungo  Park,  and  what  an  ugly  misfortune  they  considered 
his  pale  color,  prominent  nose,  and  thin  lips. 

Ought  we  to  be  called  Christians,  if  we  allow  a  prejudice 
so  absurd  to  prevent  the  improvement  of  a  large  portion  of 
the  human  race,  and  interfere  with  what  all  civilized  nations 
consider  the  most  common  rights  of  mankind  ?  It  cannot  be 
that  my  enlightened  and  generous  countrymen  will  sanction 
any  thing  so  narrow-minded  and  so  selfish. 

Having  found  much  fault  with  the  Colonization  Society, 


136  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

it  is  pleasant  to  believe  that  one  portion  of  their  enterprise 
affords  a  distant  prospect  of  doing  more  good  than  evil. 
They  now  principally  seek  to  direct  the  public  attention  to 
the  founding  of  a  colony  in  Africa ;  and  this  may  prove 
beneficial  in  process  of  time.  If  the  colored  emigrants  were 
educated  before  they  went  there,  such  a  Colony  would  tend 
slowly,  but  certainly,  to  enlighten  Africa,  to  raise  the  char- 
acter  of  the  negroes,  to  strengthen  the  increasing  liberality 
of  public  opinion,  and  to  check  the  diabolical  slave-trade. 
If  the  Colonizationists  will  work  zealously  and  judiciously 
in  this  department,  pretend  to  do  nothing  more,  and  let  others 
work  in  another  and  more  efficient  way,  they  will  deserve 
the  thanks  of  the  country ;  but  while  it  is  believed  that  they 
,do  all  the  good  which  can  be  done  in  this  important  cause, 
they  will  do  more  harm  in  America,  than  they  can  atone  for 
in  Africa. 

Very  different  pictures  are  drawn  of  Liberia  ;  one  party 
represents  it  as  thriving  beyond  description,  the  other  insists 
that  it  will  soon  fall  into  ruin.  It  is  but  candid  to  suppose 
that  the  colony  is  going  on  as  well  as  could  possibly  be  ex- 
pected, when  we  consider  that  the  emigrants  are  almost  uni- 
versally ignorant  and  vicious,  without  property,  and  without 
habits  of  industry  or  enterprise.  The  colored  people  in  our 
slave  States  must,  almost  without  exception,  be  destitute  of 
information  ;  and  in  choosing  negroes  to  send  away,  the 
masters  would  be  very  apt  to  select  the  most  helpless  and 
the  most  refractory.  Hence  the  superintendents  of  Liberia 
have  made  reiterated  complaints  of  being  flooded  with  ship- 
loads of  "  vagrants."  These  causes  are  powerful  draw, 
backs.  But  the  negroes  in  Liberia  have  schools  and  churches, 
and  they  have  freedom,  which,  wherever  it  exists,  is  always 
striving  to  work  its  upward  way. 

There  is  a  palpable  contradiction  in  some  of  the  statements 
of  this  Society. 

"  We  are  told  that  the  Colonization  Society  is  to  civilize 
$nd  evangelize  Africa.  §  «  Each  emigrant,''  says  Henry  Clay, 
the  ablest  advocate  which  the  Society  has  yet  found,  *  is  a 
missionary,  carrying  with  him  credentials  in  the  holy  cause 
of  civilization,  religion  and  free  institutions  ! !' " 

"Who  are  these  emigrants — these  missionaries?" 

"  The  Free  people  of  color.  «  They,  and  they  onfy,'  says 
the  African  Repository,  « are  QUALIFIED  for  colonizing  Af- 
rica J " 


AND    ANTl-aL,AVERY    SOCIETY.  137 

"  What  are  their  qualifications  ?  Let  the  Society  answer 
in  its  own  words  : 

"  *  Free  blacks  are  a  greater  nuisance  than  even  slaves 
themselves.' " — -African  Repository,  vol.  ii,  p.  328. 

" '  A  horde  of  miserable  people — the  objects  of  universal 
suspicion — subsisting  by  plunder.'" — C.  F.  Mercer. 

"  *  An  anomalous  race  of  beings,  the  most  debased  upon 
earth.'  " — African  Repository,  vol.  vii,  p.  230. 

"'  Of  all  classes  of  our  population  the  most  vicious  is  that 
of  the  free  colored.'  " — Tenth  Annual  Report  of  Colonization 
Society. 

An  Education  Society  has  been  formed  in  connection  with 
the  Colonization  Society,  and  their  complaint  is  principally 
that  they  cannot  find  proper  subjects  for  instruction.  Why 
cannot  such  subjects  be  found  ?  Simply  because  our  fero- 
cious prejudices  compel  the  colored  children  to  grow  up  in 
ignorance  and  vicious  companionship,  and  when  we  seek  to 
educate  them,  we  find  their  minds  closed  against  the  genial 
influence  of  knowledge. 

When  I  heard  of  the  Education  Society,  I  did  hope  to  find 
one  instance  of  sincere,  thorough  disinterested  good- will  for 
the  blacks.  But  in  the  constitution  of  that  Society,  I  again 
find  the  selfish  principle  predominant.  They  pledge  them- 
themselves  to  educate  no  colored  persons  unless  they  are 
solemnly  bound  to  quit  the  country.  The  abolitionists  are 
told  that  they  must  wait  till  the  slaves  are  more  fit  for  free- 
dom. But  if  this  system  is  pursued,  when  are  they  to  be 
more  fit  for  freedom? — Never — never — to  the  end  of  time. 

Whatever  other  good  the  Colonization  Society  may  do,  it 
seems  to  me  evident  that  they  do  not  produce  any  beneficial 
effect  on  the  condition  of  colored  people  in  America;  and 
indirectly  they  produce  much  evil. 

In  a  body  so  numerous  as  the  Colonization  Society,  there 
is,  of  course,  a  great  variety  of  character  and  opinions.  I 
presume  that  many  among  them  believe  the  ultimate  ten- 
dency of  the  Society  to  be  very  different  from  what  it  really 
is.  Some  slave-owners  encourage  it  because  they  think  it 
cannot  decrease  slavery,  and  will  keep  back  the  inconve- 
nient crisis  when  free  labor  will  be  cheaper  than  slave  labor; 
others  of  the  same  class  join  it  because  they  really  want  to 
do  some  act  of  kindness  to  the  unfortunate  African  race,  and 
all  the  country  insist  upon  it  that  this  is  the  only  way ;  some 
politicians  in  the  free  States  countenance  it  from  similar  mo- 

12* 


138  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

tives,  and  because  less  cautious  measures  might  occasion  a 
loss  of  Southern  votes  and  influence ;  the  time-serving  cFass 
— so  numerous  in  every  community, — who  are  always  ready 
to  flatter  existing  prejudices,  and  sail  smoothly  along  the 
current  of  popular  favor,  join  it,  of  course;  but  I  am  willing 
to  believe  that  the  largest  proportion  belong  to  it,  because 
they  have  compassionate  hearts,  are  fearful  of.  injuring 
their  Southern  brethren,  and  really  think  there  is  no  other 
way  of  doing  so  much  good  to  the  negroes.  With  this  last- 
mentioned  class,  I  sympathize  in  feeling,  but  differ  in  opinion. 
The  Anti-Slavery  Society  was  formed  in  January,  1832. 
Its  objects  are  distinctly  stated  in  the  second  Article  of  their 
constitution,  which  is  as  follows : 

"  ART.  2,  The  objects  of  the  Society  shall  be,  to  endeavor  by  all  means 
sanctioned  by  law,  humanity  and  religion,  to  effect  the  abolition  of  slavery 
in  the  United  States  ;  to  improve  the  character  and  condition  of  the  free 
people  of  color,  to  inform  and  correct  public  opinion  in  relation  to  their 
situation  and  rights,  and  obtain  for  them  equal  civil  and  political  rights 
and  privileges  with  the  whites." 

From  this  it  will  be  seen  that  they  think  it  a  duty  to  give 
colored  people  all  possible  means  of  education,  and  instead 
of  removing  them  away  from  the  prejudice,  to  remove  the 
prejudice  away  from  them. 

They  lay  it  down  as  a  maxim  that  immediate  emancipa- 
tion is  the  only  just  course,  and  the  only  safe  policy.  They 
say  that  slavery  is  a  common  evil,  and  therefore  there  is  a 
common  right  to  investigate  it,  and  search  for  modes  of  re- 
lief. They  say  that  New- England  shares,  and  ever  has 
shared,  in  this  national  sin,  and  is  therefore  bound  to  atone 
for  the  mischief,  as  far  as  it  can  be  done. 

The  strongest  reason  why  the  Anti-Slavery  Society  wish 
for  the  emancipation  of  slaves,  is  because  they  think  no  other 
course  can  be  pursued  which  does  not,  in  its  very  nature, 
Involve  a  constant  violation  of  the  laws  of  God.  In  the  next 
place,  they  believe  there  is  no  other  sure  way  of  providing 
for  the  safety  of  the  white  population  in  the  slave  States. 
I  know  that  many  of  the  planters  affect  to  laugh  at  the  idea 
of  fearing  their  slaves ;  but  why  are  their  laws  framed  with 
such  cautious  vigilance  ?  Why  must  not  negroes  of  different 
plantations  communicate  together?  Why  are  they  not  al- 
lowed to  be  out  in  the  evening,  or  to  carry  even  a  stick  to 
defend  themselves,  in  case  of  necessity  ? 

In  the  Virginia  Legislature  a  gentleman  said,  "It  was 


AND   ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  139 

high  time  for  something  to  be  done  when  men  did  not  dare 
to  open  their  own  doors  without  pistols  at  their  belts ;"  and 
Mr.  Randolph  has  publicly  declared  that  a  planter  was  merely 
"  a  sentry  at  his  own  door." 

Mr.  Roane,  of  Virginia,  asks, — "  Is  there  an  intelligent  man 
who  does  not  know  that  this  excess  of  slavery  is  increasing, 
and  will  continue  to  increase  in  a  ratio  which  is  alarming  in 
the  extreme,  and  must  overwhelm  our  descendants  in  ruin  ? 
Why  then  should  we  shut  our  eyes  and  turn  our  backs  upon 
the  evil  1  Will  delay  render  it  less  gigantic,  or  give  us  more 
Herculean  strength  to  meet  and  subdue  it  at  a  future  time  ? 
Oh,  no — delay  breeds  danger — procrastination  is  the  thief 
of  time,  and  the  refuge  of  sluggards." 

It  is  very  true  that  insurrection  is  perfect  madness  on  the 
part  of  the  slaves ;  for  they  are  sure  to  be  overpowered. 
But  such  madness  has  happened  ;  and  innocent  women  and 
children  have  fallen  victims  to  it. 

A  few  months  ago,  I  was  conversing  with  a  very  mild 
and  judicious  member  of  the  Anti-Slavery  Society,  when  a 
gentleman  originally  from  the  South  came  in.  As  he  was 
an  old  acquaintance,  and  had  been  a  long  time  resident  in 
New-England,  it  was  not  deemed  necessary,  as  a  matter  of 
courtesy,  to  drop  the  conversation.  He  soon  became  ex. 
cited.  "  Whatever  you  may  think,  Mrs.  Child,"  said  he, 
"  the  slaves  are  a  great  deal  happier  than  either  of  us ;  the 
less  people  know  the  more  merry  they  are."  I  replied,  "  I 
heard  you  a  short  time  since  talking  over  your  plans  for 
educating  your  son  ;  if  knowledge  brings  wretchedness,  why 
do  you  not  keep  him  in  happy  ignorance  ?"  "  The  fashion 
of  the  times  requires  some  information,"  said  he ;  "  but  why 
do  you  concern  yourself  about  the  negroes?  Why  don't 
you  excite  the  horses  to  an  insurrection,  because  they  are 
obliged  to  work,  and  are  whipped  if  they  do  not  ?"  "  One 
horse  does  not  whip  another,"  said  I ;  "  and  besides,  I  do 
not  wish  to  promote  insurrections.  I  would  on  the  contrary, 
do  all  I  could  to  prevent  them."  "  Perhaps  you  do  not  like 
the  comparison  between  slaves  and  horses,"  rejoined  he ; 
"  it  is  true,  the  horses  have  the  advantage."  I  made  no 
reply  ;  for  where  such  ground  is  assumed,  what  can  be  said  ; 
besides,  I  did  not  then,  and  I  do  not  now,  believe  that  he 
expressed  his  real  feelings.  He  was  piqued,  and  spoke  un- 
advisedly. This  gentleman  denied  that  the  lot  of  the  ne- 
groes was  hard.  He  said  they  loved  their  masters,  and 


140  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

their  masters  loved  them ;  and  in  any  cases  of  trouble  or 
illness,  a  man's  slaves  were  his  best  friends.  I  mentioned 
some  undoubted  instances  of  cruelty  to  slaves ;  he  acknowl- 
edged that  such  instances  might  very  rarely  happen,  but 
said  that  in  general  the  masters  were  much  more  to  be  pitied 
than  the  negroes.  A  lady,  who  had  been  in  South  Carolina 
when  an  insurrection  was  apprehended,  related  several  an- 
ecdotes concerning  the  alarm  that  prevailed  there  at  the 
time :  and  added,  "  I  often  wish  that  none  of  my  friends 
lived  in  a  slave  State."  "Why  should  you  be  anxious?" 
rejoined  the  Southern  gentleman  ;  "  You  know  that  they  have 
built  a  strong  citadel  in  the  heart  of  the  city,  to  which  all  the 
inhabitants  can  repair  in  case  of  insurrection."  "  So,"  said  I, 
"  they  have  built  a  citadel  to  protect  them  from  their  happy, 
contented  servants — a  citadel  against  their  best  friends  /" 
I  could  not  but  be  amused  at  the  contradictions  that  occurred 
during  this  conversation. 

That  emancipation  has  in  several  instances  been  effected 
with  safety  has  been  already  shown.  But  allowing  that 
there  is  some  danger  in  discontinuing  slavery,  is  there  not 
likewise  danger  in  continuing  it?  In  one  case,  the  danger, 
if  there  were  any,  would  soon  be  subdued  ;  in  the  other,  it 
is  continually  increasing. 

The  planter  tells  us  that  the  slave  is  very  happy,  and  bids 
us  leave  him  as  he  is.  If  laughter  is  a  sign  of  happiness, 
the  Irishman,  tumbling  in  the  same  mire  as  his  pigs,  is  happy. 
The  merely  sensual  man  is  no  doubt  merry  and  heedless ; 
but  who  would  call  him  happy  ?  Is  it  not  a  fearful  thing  to 
keep  immortal  beings  in  a  state  like  beasts  ?  The  more  the 
senses  are  subjected  to  the  moral  and  intellectual  powers, 
the  happier  man  is, — the  more  we  learn  to  sacrifice  the 
present  to  the  future,  the  higher  do  we  rise  in  the  scale  of 
existence.  The  negro  may  often  enjoy  himself,  like  the  dog 
when  he  is  not  beaten,  or  the  hog  when  he  is  not  starved ; 
but  let  not  this  be  called  happiness. 

How  far  the  slave  laws  are  conducive  to  the  enjoyment 
of  those  they  govern,  each  individual  can  judge  for  himself. 
In  the  Southern  papers,  we  continually  see  pictures  of  run- 
away negroes,  and  sometimes  the  advertisements  identify 
them  by  scars,  or  by  letters  branded  upon  them.  Is  it  nat- 
ural for  men  to  run  away  from  comfort  and  happiness,  espe- 
cially when  any  one  who  meets  them  may  shoot  them,  like 
a  dog !  and  when  whipping  nearly  unto  death  is  authorized 


AND   ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  141 

as  the  punishment?  I  forbear  to  describe  how  much  more 
shocking  slave- whipping  is  than  any  thing  we  are  accustomed 
to  see  bestowed  upon  cattle. 

But  the  advocates  of  slavery  tell  us,  that  on  the  negro's 
own  account,  it  is  best  to  keep  him  in  slavery ;  that  without 
a  master  to  guide  him  and  take  care  of  him,  he  is  a  wretched 
being ;  that  freedom  is  the  greatest  curse  that  can  be  bestowed 
upon  him.  Then  why  do  their  Legislatures  grant  it  as  a 
reward  for  " meritorious  services  to  the  State?"  Why  do 
benevolent  masters  bequeath  the  legacy  of  freedom,  "in 
consideration  of  long  and  faithful  service?"  Why  did  Jef- 
ferson so  earnestly,  and  so  very  humbly  request  the  Legisla- 
ture of  Virginia  to  ratify  the  manumission  of  his  five  favorite 
slaves  ? 

Notwithstanding  the  disadvantageous  position  of  free  ne- 
groes in  a  community  consisting  of  whites  and  slaves,  it  ij 
evident  that,  even  upon  these  terms,  freedom  is  considered 
*  blessing. 

The  Anti-Slavery  Society  agree  with  Harriet  Martineau 
in  saying,  "•  Patience  with  the  men,  but  no  patience  with  the 
principles.  As  much  patience  as  you  please  in  enlightening 
those  who  are  unaware  of  the  abuses,  but  no  patience  with 
social  crimes !" 

The  Colonization  Society  are  always  reminding  us  lhat 
the  master  has  rights  as  well  as  the  slave  :  The  Anti-Slat  ^ry 
Society  urge  us  to  remember  that  the  slave  has  righU  as 
well  as  the  master.  I  leave  it  for  sober  sense  to  determine 
which  of  these  claims  is  in  the  greatest  danger  of  being  for- 
gotten. 

The  abolitionists  think  it  a  duty  to  maintain  at  all  times, 
and  in  all  places,  that  slavery  ought  to  be  abolished,  and 
that  it  can  be  abolished.  When  error  is  so  often  repeated 
it  becomes  very  important  to  repeat  the  truth  ;  especially  as 
good  men  are  apt  to  be  quiet,  and  selfish  men  are  prone  t-» 
be  active.  They  propose  no  plan — they  leave  that  to  trie 
wisdom  of  Legislatures.  But  they  never  swerve  from  the 
principle  that  slavery  is  both  wicked  and  unnecessary.-- 
Their  object  is  to  turn  the  public  voice  against  this  evil,  by 
a  olain  exposition  of  facts. 

Perhaps  it  may  seem  of  little  use  for  individuals  to  main- 
tain  any  particular  principle,  while  they  do  not  attempt  to 
prescribe  the  ways  and  means  by  which  it  can  be  canied 
into  operation  :  But  the  voice  of  the  public  is  mighty,  either 


142  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

for  good  or  evil ;  and  that  far-sounding  echo  is  composed  of 
single  voices. 

Schiller  makes  his  Fiesco  exclaim,  "  Spread  out  the  thunder 
into  its  single  tones,  and  it  becomes  a  lullaby  for  children  ; 
pour  it  forth  in  one  quick  peal  and  the  royal  sound  shall 
move  the  heavens !" 

If  the  work  of  abolition  must  necessarily  be  slow  in  its 
progress,  so  much  the  more  need  of  beginning  soon,  and 
working  vigorously.  My  life  upon  it,  a  safe  remedy  can  be 
found  for  this  evil,  whenever  we  are  sincerely  desirous  of 
doing  justice  for  its  own  sake. 

The  Anti-Slavery  Society  is  loudly  accused  of  being  sedi- 
tious, fanatical,  and  likely  to  promote  insurrections.  It  seems 
to  be  supposed,  that  they  wish  to  send  fire  and  sword  into  the 
South,  and  encourage  the  slaves  to  hunt  down  their  masters. 
Slave-owners  wish  to  have  it  viewed  in-  this  light,  because 
they  know  the  subject  will  not  bear  discussion ;  and  men 
here,  who  give  the  tone  to  public  opinion,  have  loudly  re- 
peated the  charge — some  from  good  motives,  and  some  from 
bad.  I  once  had  a  very  strong  prejudice  against  anti-slavery ; 
— (I  am  ashamed  to  think  Iww  strong — for  mere  prejudice 
should  never  be  stubborn,)  but  a  candid  examination  has 
convinced  me,  that  I  was  in  an  error.  I  made  the  common 
mistake  of  taking  things  for  granted,  without  stepping  ta 
investigate. 

This  Society  do  not  wish  to  see  any  coercive  or  danger- 
ous measures  pursued.  They  wish  for  universal  emanci- 
pation, because  they  believe  it  is  the  only  way  to  prevent 
insurrections.  Almost  every  individual  among  them,  is  a 
strong  friend  to  Peace  Societies.  They  wish  to  move  the 
public  mind  on  this  subject,  in  the  same  manner  that  it  has 
been  moved  on  other  subjects :  viz.,  by  open,  candid,  fearless 
discussion.  This  is  all  they  want  to  do;  and  this  they  are 
determined  to  do,  because  they  believe  it  to  be  an  important 
duty.  For  a  long  time  past,  public  sympathy  has  been  ear- 
nestly directed  in  the  wrong  way ;  if  it  could  be  made  to  turn 
round,  a  most  happy  change  would  be  produced.  There  are 
many  people  at  the  South  who  would  be  glad  to  have  a  safe 
method  of  emancipation  discovered ;  but  instead  of  encourag- 
ing them,  all  our  presses,  and  pulpits,  and  books,  and  con- 
versation, have  been  used  to  strengthen  the  hands  of  those 
who  wish  to  perpetuate  the  "  costly  iniquity."  Divine  Prov- 
idence always  opens  the  way  for  the  removal  of  evils,  indi- 


AND   ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  143 

vidual  or  national,  whenever  man  is  sincerely  willing  to  have 
them  removed  ;  it  may  be  difficult  to  do  right,  but  it  is  never 
impossible.  Yet  a  majority  of  my  countrymen  do,  in  effect, 
hold  the  following  language :  "  We  know  that  this  evil  can. 
not  be  cured  ;  and  we  will  speak  and  publish  our  opinion  on 
every  occasion  :  but  you  must  not,  for  your  lives,  dare  to 
assert  that  there  is  a  possibility  of  our  being  mistaken." 

If  there  were  any  apparent  wish  to  get  rid  of  this  sin  and 
disgrace,  I  believe  the  members  of  the  Anti-Slavery  Society 
would  most  heartily  and  courageously  defend  slave-owners 
from  any  risk  they  might  incur  in  a  sincere  effort  to  do  right. 
They  would  teach  the  negro  that  it  is  the  Christian's  duty 
meekly  and  patiently  to  suffer  wrong  ;  but  they  dare  not 
excuse  the  white  man  for  continuing  to  inflict  the  wrong. 

They  think  it  unfair  that  all  arguments  on  this  subject 
should  be  founded  on  the  convenience  and  safety  of  the 
master  alone.  They  wish  to  see  the  white  man's  claims 
have  their  due  weight ;  but  they  insist  that  the  negro's  rights 
ought  not  to  be  thrown  out  of  the  balance, 

At  the  time  a  large  reward  was  offered  for  the  capture  of 
Mr.  Garrison,  on  the  ground  that  his  paper  excited  insur- 
rections,  it  is  a  fact,  that  he  had  never  sent  or  caused  to  be 
sent,  a  single  paper  south  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  line.  He 
afterwards  sent  papers  to  some  of  the  leading  politicians 
there ;  but  they  of  course  were  not  the  ones  to  promote 
negro  insurrections.  "  But,"  it  has  been  answered,  "  the 
papers  did  find  their  way  there."  Are  we  then  forbidden 
to  publish  our  opinions  upon  an  important  subject,  for  fear 
somebody  will  send  them  somewhere?  Is  slavery  to  remain 
a  sealed  book  in  this  most  communicative  of  all  ages,  and 
this  most  inquisitive  of  all  countries?  If  so,  we  live  under 
an  actual  censorship  of  the  press.  This  is  like  what  the 
Irishman  said  of  our  paved  cities — tying  down  the  stones, 
and  letting  the  mad  dogs  run  loose. 

If  insurrections  do  occur,  they  will  no  doubt  be  attributed 
to  the  Anti-Slavery  Society.  But  we  must  not  forget  that 
there  were  insurrections  in  the  West  Indies  long  before  the 
English  abolitionists  began  their  efforts ;  and  that  masters 
were  murdered  in  this  country,  before  the  Anti-Slavery  So- 
ciety  was  thought  of.  Neither  must,  we  forget  that  the 
increased  severity  of  the  laws  is  very  likely  to  goad  an  op« 
pressed  people  to  madness.  The  very  cruelty  of  the  laws 
against  resistance  under  any  circumstances,  would  be  thought 


COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

to  justify  a  white  man  in  rebellion,  because  it  gives  resistance 
the  character  of  self-defence.  "  The  law,"  says  Blackstone, 
41  respects  the  passions  of  the  human  mind ;  and  when  ex. 
ternal  violence  is  offered  to  a  man  himself,  or  those  to  whom 
he  bears  a  near  connexion,  makes  it  lawful  in  him  to  do 
himself  that  immediate  justice,  to  which  he  is  piompted  by 
nature,  and  which  no  prudential  motives  are  strong  enough 
to  restrain." 

As  it  respects  promoting  insurrections  by  discussing  this 
subject,  it  should  be  remembered  that  it  is  very  rare  for  any 
colored  person  at  the  South  to  know  how  to  read  or  write. 

Furthermore,  if  there  be  any  danger  in  the  discussion,  our 
silence  cannot  arrest  it ;  for  the  whole  world  is  talking  and 
writing  about  it.  A  good  deal  of  commotion  has  been  ex- 
cited  in  the  South  because  some  mustard  has  arrived  there, 
packed  in  English  newspapers,  containing  Parliamentary 
speeches  against  slavery ; — even  children's  handkerchiefs 
seem  to  be  regarded  as  sparks  falling  into  a  powder  maga- 
zine. How  much  better  it  would  be  not  to  live  in  the  midst 
of  a  powder  magazine. 

The  English  abolitionists  have  labored  long  and  arduously. 
Every  inch  of  the  ground  has  been  contested.  After  obtain- 
ing  the  decision  that  negroes  brought  into  England  were 
freemen,  it  took  them  thirty-five  years  to  obtain  the  abolition 
of  the  slave  trade.  But  their  progress,  though  slow  and 
difficult,  has  been  certain.  The  slaves  are  now  emancipated 
in  every  British  colony ;  and  in  effecting  this  happy  change, 
not  one  drop  of  blood  has  been  spilt,  nor  any  property  de- 
stroyed, except  two  sheds,  called  trash  houses,  which  were 
set  on  fire  by  some  unknown  hand. 

In  Antigua  and  Bermuda,  emancipation  was  unqualified; 
that  is,  the  slaves  at  once  received  the  stimulus  of  wages. 
In  those  Islands,  there  has  not  been  the  slightest  difficulty. 
In  the  other  colonies,  the  slaves  were  made  apprentices,  and 
obliged  to  work  five  years  more,  before  they  received  their 
freedom,  and  magistrates  decided  what  proportion  of  time 
should  be  employed  for  their  own  benefit.  The  planters  had 
been  so  violent  in  opposition  to  abolition,  and  had  prophesied 
such  terrible  disasters  resulting  from  it,  that  they  felt  some 
anxiety  to  have  their  prophecies  fulfilled.  The  abolition 
act,  by  some  oversight,  did  not  stipulate  that  while  the  ap- 
prentices worked  without  wages,  they  should  have  all  the 
privileges  to  which  they  had  been  accustomed  as  slaves. 


AND    ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  145 

It  had  been  a  universal  practice  for  one  slave  to  cook  for 
all  the  rest,  so  that  their  food  was  ready  the  moment  they 
left  the  field  ;  and  aged  female  slaves  tended  the  little  chil- 
dren, while  their  mothers  were  at  work.  The  planters 
changed  this.  Every  slave  was  obliged  to  go  to  his  cabin, 
whether  distant  or  near,  and  cook  his  own  dinner  ;  and  the 
time  thus  lost  must  be  made  up  to  the  masters  from  the  hours 
set  apart  for  the  benefit  of  the  apprentices.  The  uged  slaves 
were  likewise  sent  into  the  field  to  work,  while  mothers  were 
obliged  to  toil  with  infants  strapped  at  their  backs. 

Under  these  circumstances,  the  apprentices  very  naturally 
refused  to  work.  They  said,  "  We  are  worse  off  than  when 
we  were  slaves;  for  they  have  taken  away  privileges  to 
which  we  were  accustomed  in  bondage,  without  paying  us 
the  wages  of  freemen."  Still  under  all  these  provocations, 
they  offered  merely  passive  resistance.  The  worst  enemies 
of  the  cause  have  not  been  able  to  discover  that  a  single  Jife 
has  been  lost  in  the  West  Indies,  or  a  single  plantation  de- 
stroyed in  consequence  of  emancipation  !  It  is  a  lamentable 
proof  of  the  corrupt  state  of  the  American  press,  on  the  sub- 
ject  of  slavery,  that  the  irritating  conduct  of  the  West  Indian 
planters  has  been  passed  over  in  total  silence,  while  every 
effort  has  been  made  to  represent  the  passive  resistance  of 
the  apprentices  as  some  great  "  raw-head  and  bloody-bones 
story." 

While  the  good  work  was  in  progress  in  England,  it  was 
for  a  long  time  called  by  every  odious  name.  It  was  even 
urged  that  the  abolition  of  the  slave  trade  would  encourage 
the  massacre  of  white  men.  Clarkson,  who  seems  to  have 
been  been  the  meekest  and  most  patient  of  men,  was  stig- 
matized as  an  insurrectionist.  It  was  said  he  wanted  to 
bring  all  the  horrors  of  the  French  Revolution  into  England, 
merely  because  he  wanted  to  abolish  the  slave  trade.  It 
was  said  Liverpool  and  Bristol  would  sink,  never  to  rise 
again,  if  that  traffic  were  destroyed. 

The  insurrection  at  Barbadoes,  in  1816,  was  ascribed  to 
the  influence  of  missionaries  infected  with  the  wicked  phi* 
lanthropy  of  the  age;  but  it  was  discovered  that  thore  was 
no  missionary  on  the  island  at  the  time  of  that  event,  nor 
for  a  long  time  previous  to  it.  The  insurrection  at  Deme- 
rara,  several  years  after,  was  publicly  and  angrily  ascribed 
to  the  Methodist  missionaries  ;  they  were  taken  up  and  im- 
prisoned ;  and  it  was  lucky  for  these  innocent  men,  that  out 

13 


146  COLONIZATION    SOCIETY, 

of  their  twelve  hundred  black  converts,  only  tw)  had  joined 
the  rebellion. 

Ridicule  and  reproach  has  been  abundantly  heaped  upon 
the  laborers  in  this  righteous  cause.  Power,  wealth,  talent, 
pride,  and  sophistry,  are  all  in  arms  against  them ;  but  God 
and  truth  is  on  their  side.  The  cause  of  anti-slavery  is  rap- 
idly gaining  ground.  Wise  heads  as  well  as  warm  hearts, 
are  joining  in  its  support.  In  a  few  years  I  believe  the 
opinion  of  New-England  will  be  unanimous  in  its  favor. 
Maine,  which  enjoys  the  enviable  distinction  of  never  hav> 
ing  had  a  slave  upon  her  soil,  has  formed  an  Anti-Slavery 
Society  composed  of  her  best  and  most  distinguished  men. 
Those  who  are  determined  to  be  on  the  popular  side,  should 
be  cautious  how  they  move  just  now  :  It  is  a  trying  time  for 
such  characters,  when  public  opinion  is  on  the  verge  of  a 
great  change. 

Men  who  think  upon  the  subject,  are  fast  coming  to  the 
conclusion  that  slavery  can  never  be  much  ameliorated, 
while  it  is  allowed  to  exist.  What  Mr.  Fox  said  of  the  trade 
is  Irue  of  the  system — "  you  may  as  well  try  to  regulate  mur- 
der." It  is  a  disease  as  deadly  as  the  cancer ;  and  while 
one  particle  of  it  remains  in  the  constitution,  no  cure  can  be 
effected.  The  relation  is  unnatural  in  itself,  and  therefore 
it  reverses  all  the  rules  which  are  applied  to  other  human 
relations.  Thus  a  free  government  which  in  every  other 
point  of  view  is  a  blessing,  is  a  curse  to  the  slave.  The  lib- 
erty around  him  is  contagious,  and  therefore  the  laws  must 
be  endowed  with  a  tenfold  crushing  power,  or  the  captive 
will  break  his  chains.  A  despotic  monarch  can  follow  the 
impulses  of  humanity  without  scruple.  When  Vidius  Pollio 
ordered  one  of  his  slaves  to  be  cut  to  pieces  and  thrown 
into  his  fish-pond,  the  Emperor  Augustus  commanded  him  to 
emancipate  immediately,  not  only  that  slave,  but.  all  his  slaves. 
In  a  free  State  there  is  no  such  power ;  and  there  would  be 
none  needed,  if  the  laws  were  equal, — but  the  slave-owners 
are  legislators,  and  make  the  laws,  in  which  the  negro  has 
no  voice — the  master  influences  public  opnion,  but  the  slave 
cannot. 

Miss  Martineau  very  wisely  says ;  "  To  attempt  to  com- 
bine  freedom  and  slavery  is  to  put  new  wine  into  old  skins. 
Soon  may  the  old  skins  burst  ?  for  we  shall  never  want  for 
better  wine  than  they  have  ever  held." 

A  work,  has  been  lately  published,  written  by  Jonathan 


AND    ANTI-SLAVERY    SOCIETY.  147 

Dymond,  who  was  a  member  of  the  Society  of  Friends,  in 
England  ;  it  is  entitled  "  Essays  on  the  Principles  of  Moral- 
ity" — and  most  excellent  Essays  they  are.  Every  sentence 
recognises  the  principle  of  sacrificing  all  selfish  considera- 
tions to  our  inward  perceptions  of  duty  ;  and  therefore  every 
page  shines  with  the  mild  but  powerful  light  of  true  Chris- 
tian philosophy.  I  rejoice  to  hear  that  the  book  is  likely  to 
be  republished  in  this  country.  In  his  remarks  on  slavery 
the  author  says  :  "  The  supporters  of  the  system  will  here- 
after be  regarded  with  the  same  public  feelings,  as  he  who 
was  an  advocate  of  the  slave  trade  now  is.  How  is  it  that 
legislators  and  public  men  are  so  indifferent  to  their  fame  ? 
Vi  ho  would  now  be  willing  that  biography  should  record  of 
him, — This  man  defended  the  slave  trade?  The  time  will 
come  when  the  record, — This  man  opposed  the  abolition  of 
slavery ,  will  occasion  a  great  deduction  from  the  public  esti- 
mate of  weight  of  character." 


148  INTELLECT   OF   NEGROES* 


CHAPTER  VL 

INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 


«  We  must  not  allow  negroes  to  be  men,  lest  we  ourselves  should  be  suspected 
of  not  being  Christians."  MONTESQUIEU. 


IN  order  to  decide  what  is  our  duty  concerning  the  Afri- 
cans and  their  descendants,  we  must  first  clearly  make  up 
our  minds  whether  they  are,  or  are  not,  human  beings — 
whether  they  have,  or  have  not,  the  same  capacities  for  im- 
provement as  other  men. 

The  intellectual  inferiority  of  the  negroes  is  a  common, 
though  most  absurd  apology,  for  personal  prejudice,  and  the 
oppressive  inequality  of  the  laws  ;  for  this  reason,  I  shall 
take  some  pains  to  prove  that  the  present  degraded  condition 
of  that  unfortunate  race  is  produced  by  artificial  causes,  not 
b\  tne  laws  of  nature. 

*  In  the  first  place,  naturalists  are  universally  agreed  con- 
eerning  "  the  identity  of  the  human  type  ;"  by  which  they 
mean  that  all  living  creatures,  that  can,  by  any  process,  be 
enabled  to  perceive  moral  and  intellectual  truths,  are  charac- 
terized by  similar  peculiarities  of  organization.  They  may 
differ  from  each  other  widely,  but  they  still  belong  to  tha 
same  class.  An  eagle  and  a  wren  are  very  unlike  each 
other  j  but  no  one  would  hesitate  to  pronounce  that  they 
were  both  birds  :  so  it  is  with  the  almost  endless  varieties  of 
the  monkey  tribe.  We  all  know  that  beasts,  however  saga- 
cious, are  incapable  of  abstract  thought,  or  moral  perception. 
The  most  wonderful  elephant  in  the  world  could  not  command 
an  army,  or  govern  a  state.  An  ourang-outang  may  eatr 
and  dr.nk,  and  dress,  and  move  like  a  man  ;  but  he  could 
never  write  an  ode,  or  learn  to  relinquish  his  own  good  for 
the  good  of  his  species.  The  human  conformation,  however 
it  may  be  altered  by  the  operation  of  physical  or  moral 
causes,  differs  from  that  of  all  other  beings,  and  on  this 
ground,  the  negro's  claim  to  be  ranked  as  a  man,  is  univer- 
sally allowed  by  the  learned. 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  149 

The  condition  of  this  people  in  ancient  times  is  very  far 
from  indicating  intellectual  or  moral  inferiority.  Ethiopia 
held  a  conspicuous  place  among  the  nations.  Her  princes 
were  wealthy  and  powerful,  and  her  people  distinguished  for 
integrity  and  wisdom.  Even  the  proud  Grecians  evinced 
respect  for  Ethiopia,  almost  amounting  to  reverence,  and 
derived  thence  the  sublimest  portions  of  their  mythology. 
The  popular  belief  that  all  the  gods  made  an  annual  visit  to 
the  Ethiopians,  shows  the  high  estimation  in  which  they  were 
held  ;  for  we  are  not  told  that  such  an  honor  was  bestowed 
on  any  other  nation.  'In  the  first  book  of  the  Iliad,  Achilles 
is  represented  as  anxious  to  appeal  at  once  to  the  highest 
authorities  ;  but  his  mother  tells  him  :  "  Jupiter  set  off  yes- 
terday, attended  by  all  -the  gods,  on  a  journey  toward  the 
ocean,  to  feast  with  the  excellent  Ethiopians,  and  is  not  ex- 
pected back  at  Olympus  till  the  twelfth  day." 

In  Ethiopia,  was  likewise  placed  the  table  of  the  Sun, 
reported  to  kindle  of  its  own  accord,  when  exposed  to  the 
rays  of  that  great  luminary. 

In  Africa  was  the  early  reign  of  Saturn,  under  the  appel- 
lation of  Ouranus,  or  Heaven  ;  there  the  impious  Titans 
warred  with  the  sky ;  there  Jupiter  was  born  and  nursed  ; 
there  was  the  celebrated  shrine  of  Ammon,  dedicated  to 
Theban  Jove,  which  the  Greeks  reverenced  more  highly 
than  the  Delphic  Oracle ;  there  was  the  birth-place  and 
oracle  of  Minerva  ;  and  there,  Atlas  supported  both  the 
heavens  and  the  earth  upon  his  shoulders. 

It  will  be  said  that  fables  prove  nothing.  But  there  is 
probably  much  deeper  meaning  in  these  fables  than  we  now 
understand ;  there  was  surely  some  reason  for  giving  them 
such  a  "  local  habitation."  Why  did  the  ancients  represent 
Minerva  as  born  in  Africa, — and  why  are  we  told  that  Atlas 
there  sustained  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  unless  they  meant 
to  imply  that  Africa  was  the  centre,  from  which  religious  and 
scientific  light  had  been  diffused  ? 

Some  ancient  writers  suppose  that  Egypt  derived  all  the 
arts  and  sciences  from  Ethiopia ;  while  others  believe  pre- 
cisely the  reverse.  Diodorus  supported  the  first  opinion, — 
and  asserts  that  the  Ethiopian  vulgar  spoke  the  same  lan- 
guage as  the  learned  of  Egypt. 

It  is  well  known  that  Egypt  was  the  great  school  of 
knowledge  in  the  ancient  world.  It  was  the  birth-place  of 
Astronomy ;  and  we  still  mark  the  constellations  as  they 

13* 


. 

150  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

were  arranged  by  Egyptian  shepherds.  The  wisest  of  the 
Grecian  philosophers,  among  whom  were  Solon,  Pythagoras 
and  Plato,  went  there  for  instruction,  as  our  young  men  now 
go  to  England  and  Germany.  The  Eleusinian  mysteries 
were  introduced  from  Egypt ;  and  the  important  secret  which 
they  taught,  is  supposed  to  have  been  the  existence  of  one, 
invisible  God.  A  large  portion  of  Grecian  mythology  was 
thence  derived  ;  but  in  passing  from  one  country  to  the  other, 
the  form  of  these  poetical  fables  was  often  preserved,  while 
the  original  meaning  was  lost. 

Herodotus,  the  earliest  of  the  Greek  historians,  informs  us 
that  the  Egyptians  were  negroes*  This  fact  has  been  much 
doubted,  and  often  contradicted.  But  Herodotus  certainly 
had  the  best  means  of  knowing  the  truth  on  thrs  subject ;  for 
he  travelled  in  Egypt,  and  obtained  his  knowledge  of  the 
country  by  personal  observation.  He  declares  that  the  CoU 
chians  must  be  a  colony  of  Egyptians,  because,  "  like  them, 
they  have  a  black  skin  and  frizzled  hair." 

The  statues  of  the  Sphinx  have  the  usual  characteristics 
of  the  negro  race.  This  opinion  is  confirmed  by  Blumen- 
feach,  the  celebrated  German  naturalist,  and  by  Volneyr 
who  carefully  examined  the  architecture  of  Egypt. 

Concerning  the  sublimity  of  the  architecture  in  this  an- 
cient negro  kingdom,  some  idea  may  be  conceived  from  the 
Description  of  Thebes  given  by  Denon,  who  accompanied 
the  French  army  into  Egypt ;  "  This  city,  renowned  for 
numerous  kings,  who  through  their  wisdom  have  been  ele* 
vated  to  the  rank  of  gods ;  for  laws,  which  have  been  re- 
vered without  being  known  ;  for  sciences,  which  have  been 
confided  to  proud  and  mysterious  inscriptions ;  for  wise  and 
earliest  monuments  of  the  arts,  which  time  has  respected  ; 
— this  sanctuary,  abandoned,  isolated  through  barbarism, 
and  surrendered  to  the  desert  from  which  it  was  won  ;  this 
city,  shrouded  in  the  veil  of  mystery  by  which  even  colossi 
are  magnified  ;  this  remote  city,  which  imagination  has  only 
caught  a  glimpse  of  through  the  darkness  of  time — was  still 
«o  gigantic  an  apparition,  that,  at  the  sight  of  its  scattered 
ruins,  the  army  halted  of  its  own  accord,  and  the  soldiers, 
with  one  spontaneous  movement,  clapped  their  hands." 

The  honorable  Alexander  Everett,  in  his  work  on  Amer- 
ica, says:  " While  Greece  and  Rome  were  yet  barbarous, 
we  find  the  light  of  learning  and  improvement  emanating 
from  the  continent  of  Africa,  (supposed  to  be  so  degraded? 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  151 

and  accursed,)  out  of  the  midst  of  this  very  woolly-haired, 
flat-nosed,  thick-lipped,  coal-black  race,  which  some  persons 
are  tempted  to  station  at  a  pretty  low  intermediate  point  be- 
tween men  and  monkeys.  It  is  to  Egypt,  if  to  any  nation, 
that  we  must  look  as  the  real  antiqua  mater  of  the  ancient 
and  modern  refinement  of  Europe.  The  great  lawgiver  of 
the  Jews  was  prepared  for  his  divine  mission  by  a  course  of 
instruction  in  all  the  wisdom  of  the  Egyptians." 

"  The  great  Assyrian  empires  of  Babylon  and  Nineveh, 
hardly  less  illustrious  than  Egypt  in  arts  and  arms,  were 
founded  by  Ethiopian  colonies,  and  peopled  by  blacks. 

"  Palestine,  or  Canaan,  before  its  conquest  by  the  Jews,  is 
represented  in  Scripture,  as  well  as  in  other  histories,  as 
peopled  by  blacks;  and  hence  it  follows  that  Tyre  and  Car- 
thage, the  most  industrious,  wealthy,  and  polished  states  of 
their  time,  were  of  this  color." 

Another  strong  argument  against  the  natural  inferiority  of 
negroes  may  be  drawn  from  the  present  condition  of  Africa. 
Major  Denham's  account  of  the  Sultan  of  Sackatoo  proves 
that  the  brain  is  not  necessarily  rendered  stupid  by  the  color 
of  the  face  :  "  The  palace  as  usual  in  Africa,  consisted  of  a 
sort  of  inclosed  town,  with  an  open  quadrangle  in  front. 
On  entering  the  gate,  he  was  conducted  through  three  huts 
serving  as  guard-houses,  after  which  he  found  Sultan  Bello 
seated  on  a  small  carpet  in  a  sort  of  painted  and  ornamented 
cottage.  Bello  had  a  noble  and  commanding  figure,  with  a 
high  forehead  and  large  black  eyes.  He  gave  the  traveller 
a  hearty  welcome,  and  after  inquiring  the  particulars  of  his 
journey,  proceeded  to  serious  affairs.  He  produced  books 
belonging  to  Major  Denham,  which  had  been  taken  in  the 
disastrous  battle  of  Dirkullah  ;  and  though  he  expressed  a 
feeling  of  dissatisfaction  at  the  Major's  presence  on  that  occa- 
sion, readily  accepted  an  apology,  and  restored  the  volumes. 
He  only  asked  to  have  the  subject  of  each  explained,  and 
to  hear  the  sound  of  the  language,  which  he  declared  to  be 
beautiful.  He  then  began  to  press  his  visiter  with  theologi. 
cal  questions,  and  showed  himself  not  wholly  unacquainted 
with  the  controversies  which  have  agitated  the  Christian 
world  ;  indeed,  he  soon  went  beyond  the  depth  of  his  visiter, 
who  was  obliged  to  own  he  was  not  versant  in  the  abstruser 
mysteries  of  divinity. 

"  The  Sultan  now  opened  a  frequent  and  familiar  commu- 
nication with  the  English  envoy,  in  which  he  showed  himself 


152  INTELLECT  OF  NEGROES. 

possessed  of  a  good  deal  of  information.  The  astronomical 
instruments,  from  which,  as  from  implements  of  magic,  many 
of  his  attendants  started  with  horror,  were  examined  by  the 
monarch  with  an  intelligent  eye.  On  being  shown  the  plani- 
sphere, he  proved  his  knowledge  of  the  planets  and  many 
of  the  constellations,  by  repeating  their  Arabic  names.  The 
telescope,  which  presented  objects  inverted, — the  compass, 
by  which  he  could  always  turn  to  the  East  when  praying, 
— and  the  sextant,  which  he  called  'the  looking-glass  of  the 
Sun,'  excited  peculiar  interest.  He  inquired  with  evident 
jealousy,  into  some  parts  of  English  history ;  particularly 
the  conquest  of  India  and  the  attack  upon  Algiers." 

The  same  traveller  describes  the  capital  of  Loggun,  be- 
neath whose  high  walls  the  river  flowed  in  majestic  beauty. 
"  It  was  a  handsome  city,  with  a  street  as  wide  as  Pall  Mall, 
bordered  by  large  dwellings,  having  spacious  areas  in  front. 
Manufacturing  industry  was  honored.  The  cloths  woven 
here  were  superior  to  those  of  Bornou,  being  finely  dyed 
with  indigo,  and  beautifully  glazed.  There  was  even  a  cur- 
rent coin,  made  of  iron,  somewhat  in  the  form  of  a  horse- 
shoe ;  and  rude  as  this  was,  none  of  their  neighbors  possessed 
any  thing  similar.  The  women  were  handsome,  intelligent 
and  lively." 

All  travellers  in  Africa  agree,  that  the  inhabitants,  par- 
ticularly of  the  interior,  have  a  good  deal  of  mechanical 
skill.  They  tan  and  dye  leather,  sometimes  thinning  it  in 
such  a  manner  that  it  is  as  flexible  as  paper.  In  Houssa, 
leather  is  dressed  in  the  same  soft,  rich  style  as  in  Morocco ; 
they  manufacture  cordage,  handsome  cloths,  and  fine  tissue. 
Though  ignorant  of  the  turning  machine,  they  make  good 
pottery  ware,  and  some  of  their  jars  are  really  tasteful. 
They  prepare  indigo,  and  extract  ore  from  minerals.  They 
make  agricultural  tools,  and  work  skilfully  in  gold,  silver 
and  steel.  Dickson,  who  knew  jewellers  and  watchmakers 
among  them,  speaks  of  a  very  ingenious  wooden-clock  made 
by  a  negro.  Hornemann  says  the  inhabitants  of  Haissa  give 
their  cutting  instruments  a  keener  edge  than  European  art- 
ists, and  their  files  are  superior  to  those  of  France  or  Eng- 
land. Golberry  assures  us  that  some  of  the  African  stuffs 
are  extremely  fine  and  beautiful. 

Mungo  Park  says  "  The  industry  of  the  Foulahs,  in  pas- 
turage and  agriculture,  is  everywhere  remarkable.  Their 
herds  and  flocks  are  numerous,  and  they  arc  opulent  in  a 


INTELLECT    OP    NEGROES.  153 

high  degree.  They  enjoy  all  the  necessaries  of  lifr  in  the 
greatest,  profusion.  They  display  much  skill  in  the  manage, 
ment  of  their  cattle,  making  them  extremely  gentle  by  kind- 
ness and  familiarity."  The  same  writer  remarks  that  the 
negroes  love  instruction,  and  that  they  have  advocates  to 
defend  the  slaves  brought  before  their  tribunals. 

Speaking  of  Wasiboo,  he  says :  "  Cultivation  is  carried  on 
here  on  a  very  extensive  scale ;  and,  as  the  natives  them- 
selves express  it,  *  hunger  is  never  known.'  " 

On  Mr.  Park's  arrival  at  one  of  the  Sego  ferries  for  the 
purpose  of  crossing  the  Niger  to  see  the  king,  he  says : 
"  We  found  a  great  number  waiting  for  a  passage ;  they 
looked  at  me  with  silent  wonder.  The  view  of  this  exten- 
sive cicy  ;  the  numerous  canoes  upon  the  river ;  the  crowded 
population,  and  the  cultivated  state  of  the  surrounding  coun- 
try, formed  altogether  a  prospect  of  civilization  and  mag. 
nificence,  which  I  little  expected  to  find  in  the  bosom  of 
Africa." 

"  The  public  discussions  in  Africa,  called  palavers,  exhibit 
a  fluent  and  natural  oratory,  often  accompanied  with  much 
good  sense  and  shrewdness.  Above  all,  the  passion  for  poe- 
try is  nearly  universal.  As  soon  as  the  evening  breeze  be- 
gins  to  blow,  the  song  resounds  throughout  all  Africa, — it 
cheers  the  despondency  of  the  wanderer  through  the  desert 
— it  enlivens  the  social  meetings — it  inspires  the  dance, — 
and  even  the  lamentations  of  the  mourners  are  poured  forth 
in  measured  accents. 

"In  these  extemporary  and  spontaneous  effusions,  the 
speaker  gives  utterance  to  his  hopes  and  fears,  his  joys  and 
sorrows.  All  the  sovereigns  are  attended  by  singing  men 
and  women,  who  like  the  European  minstrels  and  trouba- 
dours celebrate  interesting  events  in  verse,  which  they  re- 
peat  before  the  public.  Like  all,  whose  business  it  is  to 
rehearse  the  virtues  of  monarchs,  they  are,  of  course,  too 
much  given  to  flattery.  The  effusions  of  the  African  muse 
are  inspired  by  nature  and  animated  by  national  enthusiasm. 
From  the  few  specimens  given,  they  seem  not  unlikely  to 
reward  the  care  of  a  collector.  How  few  among  our  peas- 
antry could  have  produced  the  pathetic  lamentation  uttered 
in  the  little  Bambarra  cottage  over  the  distresses  of  Mungo 
Park  !  These  songs,  handed  down  from  father  to  son,  evi- 
dently contain  all  that  exists  among  the  African  nations  of 
traditional  history.  From  the  songs  of  the  Jillimen,  or  min- 


154  INTELLECT    OP    NEGROES. 

strels,  of  Soolimani,  Major  Laing  was  enabled  to  compile  tiro 
annals  of  that  small  kingdom  for  more  than  a  century."* 

In  addition  to  the  arguments  drawn  from  the  ancient  con- 
ditions  of  Africa,  and  the  present  character  of  people  in  the 
interior  of  that  country,  there  are  numerous  individual  ex- 
amples of  spirit,  courage,  talent,  and  magnanimity. 

History  furnishes  very  few  instances  of  bravery,  intelli- 
gence, and  perseverance,  equal  to  the  famous  Zhinga,  the 
negro  queen  of  Angola,  born  in  1582.  Like  other  despotic 
princes,  her  character  is  stained  with  numerous  acts  of  fero- 
city and  crime ;  but  her  great  abilities  cannot  be  for  a  mo- 
ment doubted. 

During  her  brother's  reign,  Zhinga  was  sent  as  ambassa- 
dress to  Loanda,  to  negotiate  terms  of  peace  with  the  Por- 
tuguese. A  palace  was  prepared  for  her  reception ;  and 
ehe  was  received  with  the  honors  due  to  her  rank.  On  en- 
tering the  audience-chamber,  she  perceived  that  a  magnifi. 
cent  chair  of  state  was  prepared  for  the  Portuguese  Viceroy, 
while  in  front  of  it,  a  rich  carpet,  and  velvet  cushions,  em- 
broidered  with  gold,  were  arranged  on  the  floor  for  her  use. 
The  haughty  princess  observed  this  in  silent  displeasure. 
She  gave  a  signal  with  her  eyes,  and  immediately  one  of 
her  women  knelt  on  the  carpet,  supporting  her  weight  on  her 
hands.  Zhinga  gravely  seated  herself  upon  her  back,  and 
awaited  the  entrance  of  the  Viceroy.  The  spirit  and  dignity 
with  which  she  fulfilled  her  mission  excited  the  admiration 
of  the  whole  court.  When  an  alliance  was  offered,  upon 
the  condition  of  annual  tribute  to  the  king  of  Portugal,  she 
proudly  answered :  "  Such  proposals  are  for  a  people  sub- 
dued by  force  of  arms ;  they  are  unworthy  of  a  powerful 
monarch,  who  voluntarily  seeks  the  friendship  of  the  Portu- 
guese, and  who  scorns  to  be  their  vassal." 

She  finally  concluded  a  treaty,  upon  the  single  condition 
of  restoring  all  the  Portuguese  prisoners.  When  the  audi- 
ence was  ended,  the  Viceroy,  as  he  conducted  her  from  the 
room,  remarked  that  the  attendant  upon  whose  back  she 
had  been  seated,  still  remained  in  the  same  posture.  Zhinga 
replied  :  "  It  is  not  fit  that  the  ambassadress  of  a  great  king 
should  be  twice  served  with  the  same  seat.  I  have  no  further 
use  for  the  woman." 

Charmed  with  the  politeness  of  the  Europeans,  and  the 

*  English  Family  Library,  No.  XVL 


INTELLECT   OF   NEGROES.  155 

evolutions  of  their  troops,  the  African  princess  long  delayed 
her  departure.  Having  received  instruction  in  the  Christian 
religion,  she  professed  a  deep  conviction  of  its  truth.  W  hether 
this  was  sincere,  or  merely  assumed  from  political  motives, 
is  uncertain.  During  her  visit,  she  received  baptism,  being 
then  forty  years  old.  She  returned  to  Angola  loaded  with 
presents  and  honors.  Her  brother,  notwithstanding  a  solemn 
promise  to  preserve  the  treaty  she  had  formed,  soon  made 
war  upon  the  Portuguese.  He  was  defeated,  and  soon  after 
died  of  poison ;  some  said  his  death  was  contrived  by  Zhinga. 
She  ascended  the  throne,  and  having  artfully  obtained  pos- 
session of  her  nephew's  person,  she  strangled  him  with  her 
own  hands.  Revenge,  as  well  as  ambition,  impelled  her  to 
this  crime  ;  for  her  brother  had,  many  years  before,  mur- 
dered her  son,  lest  he  should  claim  the  crown. 

The  Portuguese  increased  so  fast  in  numbers,  wealth,  and 
power,  that  the  people  of  Angola  became  jealous  of  them, 
and  earnestly  desired  war.  Zhinga,  having  formed  an  alii- 
ance  with  the  Dutch,  and  with  several  neighboring  chiefs, 
began  the  contest  with  great  vigor.  She  obtained  several 
victories,  at  first,  but  was  finally  driven  from  her  kingdom 
with  great  loss.  Her  conquerors  offered  to  re-establish  her 
on  the  throne,  if  she  would  consent  to  pay  tribute.  She 
haughtily  replied,  "  If  my  cowardly  subjects  are  willing  to 
bear  shameful  fetters,  /  cannot  endure  even  the  thought  of 
dependence  upon  any  foreign  power." 

In  order  to  subdue  her  stubborn  spirit,  the  Portuguese  placed 
a  king  of  their  own  choosing  upon  the  throne  of  Angola. 
This  exasperated  Zhinga  to  such  a  degree,  that  she  vowed 
everlasting  hatred  against  her  enemies,  and  publicly  abjured 
their  religion.  At  the  head  of  an  intrepid  and  ferocious  band, 
she,  during  eighteen  years,  perpetually  harassed  the  Por- 
tuguese. She  could  neither  be  subdued  by  force  of  armst 
nor  appeased  by  presents.  She  demanded  complete  resti- 
tution  of  her  territories,  and  treated  every  other  proposal 
with  the  utmost  scorn.  Once,  when  closely  besieged  in  an 
island,  she  asked  a  short  time  to  reflect  on  the  terms  of  sur- 
render. The  request  being  granted,  she  silently  guided  her 
troops  through  the  river  at  midnight,  and  carried  fire  and 
sword  into  another  portion  of  the  enemy's  country. 

The  total  defeat  of  the  Hollanders,  and  the  death  of  her 
sister,  who  had  been  taken  captive  during  the  wars,  softened 
her  spirit.  She  became  filled  with  remorse  for  having  re- 


156  INTELLECT  OF  NEGROES. 

nounced  the  Christian  religion.  She  treated  her  prisoners 
more  mercifully,  and  gave  orders  that  the  captive  priests 
should  be  attended  with  the  utmost  reverence.  They  per- 
ceived  the  change,  and  lost  no  opportunity  of  regaining  their 
convert.  The  queen  was  ready  to  comply  with  their  wishes, 
but  feared  a  revolt  among  her  subjects  and  allies,  who  were 
strongly  attached  to  the  customs  of  their  fathers.  The 
priests,  by  numerous  artifices,  worked  so  powerfully  upon 
the  superstitious  fears  of  the  people,  that  they  were  prepared 
to  hail  Zhinga's  return  to  the  Catholic  faith  with  joy. 

The  queen,  thus  reconciled  to  the  church,  signed  a  treaty 
of  peace;  took  the  Capuchins  for  her  counsellors  ;  dedicated 
her  capital  city  to  the  Virgin,  under  the  name  of  Saint  Mary 
of  Matamba ;  and  erected  a  large  church.  Idolatry  was 
forbidden,  under  the  most  rigorous  penalties ;  and  not  a  few 
fell  martyrs  to  Zhinga's  fiery  zeal. 

A  law  prohibiting  polygamy  excited  discontent.  Zhinga, 
though  seventy-five  years  old,  publicly  patronized  marriage, 
by  espousing  one  of  her  courtiers  ;  and  her  sister  was  in- 
duced to  give  the  same  example.  The  Portuguese  again 
tried  to  make  her  a  vassal  to  the  crown ;  but  the  priests, 
notwithstanding  their  almost  unlimited  influence,  could  never 
obtain  her  consent  to  this  degradation. 

In  1657,  one  of  her  tributaries  having  violated  the  treaty 
of  peace,  she  marched  at  the  head  of  her  troops,  defeated 
the  rebel,  and  sent  his  head  to  the  Portuguese. 

In  1658,  she  made  war  upon  a  neighboring  king,  who 
had  attacked  her  territories;  and  returned  in  triumph,  after 
having  compelled  him  to  submit  to  such  conditions  as  she  saw 
fit  to  impose.  The  same  year,  she  abolished  the  cruel  cus- 
tom of  immolating  human  victims  on  the  tombs  of  princes; 
and  founded  a  new  city,  ornamented  with  a  beautiful  church 
and  palace. 

She  soon  after  sent  an  embassage  to  the  Pope,  requesting 
more  missionaries  among  her  people.  The  Pontiff's  answer 
was  publicly  read  in  the  church,  where  Zhinga  appeared 
with  a  numerous  and  brilliant  train.  At  a  festival  in  honor 
of  this  occasion  she  and  the  ladies  of  her  court  performed  a 
mimic  battle,  in  the  dress  and  armor  of  Amazons.  Though 
more  than  eighty  years  old,  this  remarkable  woman  displayed 
as  much  strength,  agility,  and  skill,  as  she  could  have  done  at 
twenty. five.  She  died  in  1663,  aged  eighty-two.  Arrayed  in 
royal  robes,  ornamented  with  precious  stones,  with  a  bow  and 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  157 

arrow  in  her  hand,  the  body  was  shown  to  her  sorrowing 
subjects.  It  was  then,  according  to  her  wish,  clothed  in 
the  Capuchin  habit,  with  crucifix  and  rosary.* 

The  commandant  of  a  Portuguese  fort,  who  expected  the 
arrival  of  an  African  envr^v,  ordered  splendid  preparations, 
that  he  might  be  dazzled  with  the  idea  of  European  wealth. 
When  the  negro  entered  the  richly-ornamented  saloon,  he 
was  not  invited  to  sit  down.  Like  Zhinga,  he  made  a  signal 
to  an  attendant,  who  knelt  upon  the  floor,  and  thus  furnished 
him  a  seat.  The  commandant  asked,  "  Is  thy  king  as  pow- 
erful as  the  King  of  Portugal  ?"  The  colored  envoy  replied  : 
"  My  king  has  a  hundred  servants  like  the  king  of  Portugal; 
a  thousand  like  thee  ;  and  but  one  like  myself."  As  he  said 
this,  he  indignantly  left  the  room. 

Michaud,  the  elder,  says  that  in  different  places  on  the 
Persian  Gulf,  he  has  seen  negroes  as  heads  of  great  com- 
mercial houses,  receiving  orders  and  expediting  vessels  to 
various  parts  of  India.  Their  intelligence  in  business  is  well 
known  on  the  Levant. 

The  Czar  Peter  of  Russia,  during  his  travels  became  ac- 
quainted with  Annibal,  an  African  negro,  who  was  intelligent 
and  well  educated.  Peter  the  Great,  true  to  his  generous 
system  of  rewarding  merit  wherever  he  found  it,  made  An- 
nibal Lieutenant-General  and  Director  of  the  Russian  Artil- 
lery. He  was  decorated  with  the  riband  of  the  order  of  St. 
Alexander  Nenski.  His  son,  a  mulatto,  "was  Lieutenant- 
General  of  Artillery,  and  said  to  be  a  man  of  talent.  St. 
Pierre  and  La  Harpe  were  acquainted  with  him. 

Job  Ben  Solomon,  was  the  son  of  the  Mohammedan  king 
of  Bunda,  on  the  Gambia.  He  was  taken  in  1730,  and  sold 
in  Maryland.  By  a  train  of  singular  adventures  he  was 
conveyed  to  England,  where  his  intelligence  and  dignified 
manners  gained  him  many  friends ;  among  whom  was  Sir 
Hans  Sloane,  for  whom  he  translated  several  Arabic  manu- 
scripts. After  being  received  with  distinction  a.t  the  Court 
of  St.  James,  the  African  Company  became  interested  in  his 
fate,  and  carried  him  back  to  Bunda,  in  the  year  1734 
His  uncle  embracing  him,  said,  "  During  sixty  years,  you 
are  the  first  slave  I  have  ever  seen  return  from  the  Ameri- 
can isles."  At  his  father's  death,  Solomon  became  king,  and 
was  much  beloved  in  his  states. 

*  See  Biographic  Universelle. 
14 


158  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

The  son  of  the  King  of  Congo,  and  several  of  the  young 
people  of  rank  were  sent  to  the  Portuguese  universities,  in 
the  time  of  King  Immanuel.  Some  of  them  were  distin- 
guished scholars,  and  several  of  them  promoted  to  the  priest- 
hood. 

In  1765,  a  negro  in  England  was  ordained  by  Doctor 
Keppell,  bishop  of  Exeter.  In  Prevot's  General  History  of 
Voyages,  there  is  an  account  of  a  black  bishop  who  studied 
at  Rome. 

Antonio  Perrura  Refioucas,  who  is  at  the  present  time 
Deputy  from  Bahia,  in  the  Cortes  of  Brazil,  is  a  distinguished 
lawyer,  and  a  good  man.  He  is  learned  in  political  economy 
and  has  written  ably  upon  the  currency  of  Brazil.  I  have 
heard  intelligent  white  men  from  that  country  speak  of  him 
in  terms  of  high  respect  and  admiration. 

Henry  Diaz,  who  is  extolled  in  all  the  histories  of  Brazil, 
was  a  negro  and  slave.  He  became  Colonel  of  a  regiment 
of  foot-soldiers,  of  his  own  color;  and  such  was  his  reputa- 
tion for  sagacity  and  valor,  that  it  was  considered  a  distinc- 
tion to  be  under  his  command.  In  the  contest  between  the 
Portuguese  and  Hollanders,  in  1637,  Henry  Diaz  fought 
bravely  against  the  latter.  He  compelled  them  to  capitulate 
at  Arecise,  and  to  surrender  Fernanbon.  In  a  battle,  strug- 
gling against  the  superiority  of  numbers,  and  perceiving  that 
some  of  his  soldiers  began  to  give  way,  he  rushed  into  the 
midst  of  them,  exclaiming,  "  Are  these  the  brave  companions 
of  Henry  Diaz  !"  His  example  renewed  their  courage,  and 
they  returned  so  impetuously  to  the  charge,  that  the  almost 
victorious  army  were  compelled  to  retreat  nastily. 

Having  wounded  his  left-hand  in  battle,  he  caused  it  to  be 
struck  off,  rather  than  to  lose  the  time  necessary  to  dress  it. 
This  regiment,  composed  of  blacks,  long  existed  in  Brazil 
under  the  popular  name  of  Henry  Diaz. 

Antony  William  Amo,  born  in  Guinea,  was  brought  to  Eu- 
rope when  very  young.  The  Princess  of  Brunswick,  Wolf- 
enbuttel,  defrayed  the  expenses  of  his  education.  He  pursued 
his  studies  at.  Halle  and  at  Wittenberg,  and  so  distinguished 
himself  by  his  character  and  abilities,  that  the  Rector  and 
Council  of  Wittenberg  thought  proper  to  give  public  testi- 
mony of  their  respect  in  a  letter  of  congratulation.  In  this 
letter  they  remark  that  Terence  also  was  an  African — that 
many  martyrs,  doctors,  and  fathers  of  the  church  were  born 
in  the  same  country,  where  learning  once  flourished,  and 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  159 

which  by  losing  the  Christian  faith,  again  fell  back  into  bar 
barism.  Amo  delivered  private  lectures  on  philosophy, 
which  are  highly  praised  in  the  same  letter.  He  became  a 
doctor. 

Lislet  Geoffrroy,  a  mulatto,  was  an  officer  of  Artillery  and 
guardian  of  the  Depot  of  Maps  and  Plans  of  the  Isle  of  France. 
He  was  a  correspondent  of  the  French  Academy  of  Sciences, 
to  whom  he  regularly  transmitted  meteorological  observa- 
tions, and  sometimes  hydrographical  journals.  His  map  of 
the  Isles  of  France  and  Reunion  is  considered  the  best  map 
of  those  islands  that  has  appeared.  In  the  archives  of  the 
Institute  of  Paris  is  an  account  of  Lislet's  voyage  to  the  Bay 
of  St.  Luce.  He  points  out  the  exchangeable  commodities 
and  other  resources  which  it  presents  ;  and  urges  the  impor- 
tance of  encouraging  industry  by  the  hope  of  advantageous 
commerce,  instead  of  exciting  the  natives  to  war  in  order  to 
obtain  slaves.  Lislet  established  a  scientific  society  at  the 
Isle  of  France,  to  which  some  white  men  refused  to  belong, 
because  its  founder  had  a  skin  more  deeply  colored  than 
their  own. 

James  Derham,  originally  a  slave  at  Philadelphia,  was  sold 
to  a  physician,  who  employed  him  in  compounding  drugs  ; 
he  was  afterward  sold  to  a  surgeon,  and  finally  to  Doctor 
Robert  Dove,  of  New-Orleans.  In  1788,  at  the  age  of  twen- 
ty-one, he  became  the  most  distinguished  physician  in  that 
city,  and  was  able  to  talk  with  French,  Spanish,  and  English, 
in  their  own  languages.  Doctor  Rush  says,  "  I  conversed 
with  him  on  medicine,  and  found  him  very  learned.  I  thought 
I  could  give  him  information  concerning  the  treatment  of  dis- 
eases ;  but  I  learned  from  him  more  than  he  could  expect 
from  me." 

Thomas  Fuller,  an  African  residing  in  Virginia,  did  not 
know  how  to  read  or  write,  but  had  great  facility  in  arithmet- 
ical calculations.  He  was  once  asked,  how  many  seconds  has 
an  individual  lived  when  he  is  seventy  years,  seven  months, 
and  seven  days  old  ?  In  a  minute  and  a  half  he  answered  the 
question.  One  of  the  company  took  a  pen,  and  after  a  long 
calculation,  said  Fuller  had  made  the  sum  too  large.  "  No," 
replied  the  negro,  "  the  error  is  on  your  side.  You  did  not 
calculate  the  leap  years."  These  facts  are  mentioned  in  a 
letter  from  Doctor  Rush,  published  in  the  fifth  volume  of  the 
American  Museum. 

In  1788,  Othello,  a  negro,  published  at  Baltimore  an  Essay 


160  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

against  Slavery.  Addressing  white  men,  he  says,  "  Is  not 
your  conduct,  compared  with  your  principles,  a  sacrilegious 
irony?  When  you  dare  to  talk  of  civilization  and  the  gospel, 
you  pronounce  your  own  anathema.  In  you  the  superiority 
of  power  produces  nothing  but  a  superiority  of  brutality  and 
barbarism.  Your  fine  political  systems  are  sullied  by  the 
outrages  committed  against  human  nature  and  the  divine 
majesty." 

Olandad  E^uiano,  better  known  by  the  name  of  Gustavus 
Vasa,  was  stolen  in  Africa,  at  twelve  years  old,  together  with 
his  sister.  They  were  torn  from  each  other  ;  and  the  brother, 
after  a  horrible  passage  in  a  slave-ship,  was  sold  at  Barba- 
does.  Being  purchased  by  a  lieutenant,  he  accompanied  his 
new  master  to  England,  Guernsey,  and  the  siege  of  Louis- 
bourg.  He  afterwards  experienced  great  changes  of  fortune, 
and  made  voyages  to  various  parts  of  Europe  and  America. 
In  all  his  wanderings,  he  cherished  an  earnest  desire  for  free- 
dom. He  hoped  to  obtain  his  liberty  by  faithfulness  and  zeal 
in  his  master's  service ;  but  finding  avarice  stronger  than 
benevolence,  he  began  trade  with  a  capital  of  three  pence, 
and  by  rigid  economy  was  at  last  able  to  purchase — his  own 
body  and  soul;  this,  however,  was  not  effected,  until  he  had 
endured  much  oppression  and  insult.  He  was  several  times 
shipwrecked,  and  finally,  after  thirty  years  of  vicissitude  and 
suffering,  he  settled  in  London  and  published  his  Memoirs. 
The  book  is  said  to  be  written  with  all  the  simplicity,  and 
something  of  the  roughness,  of  uneducated  nature.  He  gives 
a  naive  description  of  his  terror  at  an  earthquake,  his  surprise 
when  he  first  saw  snow,  a  picture,  a  watch,  and  a  quadrant. 

He  always  had  an  earnest  desire  to  understand  navigation, 
as  a  probable  means  of  one  day  escaping  from  slavery. 
Having  persuaded  a  sea-captain  to  give  him  lessons,  he  ap- 
plied himself  with  great  diligence,  though  obliged  to  contend 
with  many  obstacles,  and  subject  to  frequent  interruptions. 
Doctor  Irving,  with  whom  he  once  lived  as  a  servant,  taught 
him  to  render  salt  water  fresh  by  distillation.  Some  time 
after,  when  engaged  in  a  northern  expedition,  he  made  good 
use  of  this  knowledge,  and  furnished  the  crew  with  water 
they  could  drink. 

His  sympathies  were,  very  naturally,  given  to  the  weak 
and  the  despised,  wherever  he  found  them.  He  deplores  the 
fate  of  modern  Greeks,  nearly  as  much  degraded  by  the 
Turks  as  the  negroes  are  by  their  white  brethren.  In  1739, 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  161 

Vasa  presented  a  petition  to  the  British  parliament,  for  the 
suppression  of  the  slave-trade.  His  son,  named  Sancho,  was 
assistant  librarian  to  Sir  Joseph  Banks,  and  Secretary  to  the 
Committee  for  Vaccination. 

Another  negro,  named  Ignatius  Sancho,  was  born  on  board 
a  Guinea  ship,  where  his  parents  were  both  captives,  destined 
for  the  South  American  slave  market.  Change  of  climate 
killed  his  mother,  and  his  father  committed  suicide.  At  two 
years  old  the  orphan  was  carried  to  England,  and  presented 
to  some  ladies  residing  at  Greenwich.  Something  in  his 
character  reminded  them  of  Don  Quixote's  squire,  and  they 
added  Sancho  to  his  original  name  of  Ignatius.  The  Duke 
of  Montague  saw  him  frequently  and  thought  he  had  a  mind 
worthy  of  cultivation.  He  often  sent  him  books,  and  advised 
the  ladies  to  give  him  a  chance  for  education ;  but  they  had 
less  liberal  views,  and  often  threatened  to  send  the  poor  boy 
again  into  slavery.  After  the  death  of  his  friends,  he  went 
into  the  service  of  the  Duchess  of  Montague,  who  at  her 
death  left  him  an  annuity  of  thirty  pounds;  beside  which  he 
had  saved  seventy  pounds  out  of  his  earnings. 

Something  of  dissipation  mixed  with  his  love  of  reading, 
and  sullied  the  better  part  of  his  character.  He  spent  his 
last  shilling  at  Drury  Lane,  to  see  Garrick,  who  was  ex- 
tremely friendly  to  him.  At  one  time  he  thought  of  perform- 
ing  African  characters  on  the  stage,  but  was  prevented  by 
a  bad  articulation. 

He  afterward  became  very  regular  in  his  habits,  and  mar- 
ried  a  worthy  West  Indian  girl.  After  his  death,  two  voU 
umes  of  his  letters  were  printed,  of  which  a  second  edition 
was  soon  published,  with  a  portrait  of  the  author,  designed 
by  Gainsborough,  and  engraved  by  Bartolozzi. 

Sterne  formed  an  acquaintance  with  Ignatius  Sancho  ;  and 
in  the  third  volume  of  his  letters,  there  is  an  epistle  addressed 
to  this  African,  in  which  he  tells  him  that  varieties  in  nature 
do  not  sunder  the  bands  of  brotherhood  ;  and  expresses  his 
indignation  that  certain  men  wish  to  class  their  equals  among 
the  brutes,  in  order  to  treat  them  as  such  with  impunity. 
Jefferson  criticises  Sancho  with  some  severity,  for  yielding 
too  much  to  an  eccentric  imagination  ;  but  he  acknowledges 
that  he  has  an  easy  style,  and  a  happy  choice  of  expres- 
sions. 

The  letters  of  Sancho  are  thought  to  bear  some  resem- 
blance to  those  of  Sterne,  both  in  their  beauties  and  defects. 

14* 


162  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

Francis  Williams,  a  negro,  was  born  in  Jamaica.  The 
Duke  of  Montaigne,  governor  of  the  island,  thinking  him  an 
unusually  bright  boy,  sent  him  to  England  to  school.  He 
afterward  entered  the  University  of  Cambridge,  and  became 
quite  a  proficient  in  mathematics.  During  his  stay  in  Eu- 
rope, he  published  a  song  which  became  quite  popular,  be- 
ginning, "  Welcome,  welcome,  brother  debtor."  After  his 
return  to  Jamaica,  the  Duke  tried  to  obtain  a  place  for  him 
in  the  council  of  the  government,  but  did  not  succeed.  He 
then  became  a  teacher  of  Latin  and  mathematics.  He  wrote 
a  good  deal  of  Latin  verse,  a  species  of  composition  of  which 
he  was  very  fond.  This  negro  is  described  as  having  been 
pedantic  and  haughty ;  indulging  a  profound  contempt  for 
men  of*his  own  color.  Where  learning  is  a  rare  attainment 
among  any  people,  or  any  class  of  people,  this  effect  is  very 
apt  to  be  produced. 

Phillis  Wheatly,  stolen  from  Africa  when  seven  or  eight 
years  old,  was  sold  to  a  wealthy  merchant  in  Boston,  in  1761. 
Being  an  intelligent  and  winning  child,  she  gained  upon  the 
affections  of  her  master's  family,  and  they  allowed  her  un- 
common advantages.  When  she  was  nineteen  years  old,  a 
little  volume  of  her  poems  was  published,  and  passed  through 
several  editions,  both  in  England  and  the  United  States.  Lest 
the  authenticity  of  the  poems  should  be  doubted,  her  master, 
the  governor,  the  lieutenant-governor,  and  fifteen  other  re- 
spectable persons,  acquainted  with  her  character  and  circum- 
stances, testified  that  they  were  really  her  own  productions. 
Jefferson  denies  that  these  poems  have  any  merit ;  but  I  think 
he  would  have  judged  differently,  had  he  been  perfectly  un- 
prejudiced. It  would  indeed  be  absurd  to  put  Phillis  Whcatly 
in  competition  with  Mrs.  Hemans,  Mary  Hewitt,  Mrs.  Sig. 
ourney,  Miss  Gould,  and  other  modern  writers  ;  but  her  pro- 
ductions certainly  appear  very  respectable  in  comparison 
with  most  of  the  poetry  of  that  day. 

Phillis  Wheatly  received  her  freedom  in  1775 ;  and  two 
years  after  married  a  colored  man,  who,  like  herself,  was  con- 
eidered  a  prodigy.  He  was  at  first  a  grocer;  but  afterward 
became  a  lawyer,  well  known  by  the  name  of  Doctor  Peter, 
He  was  in  the  habit  of  pleading  causes  for  his  brethren  be- 
fore the  tribunals  of  justice,  and  gained  both  reputation  and 
fortune  by  his  practice.  Phillis  had  been  flattered  and  in- 
dulged from  her  earliest  childhood  ;  and,  like  many  literary 
women  in  old  times,  she  acquired  something  of  contempt  for 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  163 

domestic  occupations.  This  is  said  to  have  produced  unhap- 
piness  between  her  and  her  husband.  She  died  in  1780. 

Mr.  VVilberforce,  (on  whom  may  the  blessing  of  God  rest 
for  ever  !)  aided  by  several  benevolent  individuals,  established 
a  seminary  for  colored  people  at  Clapham,  a  few  leagues  from 
London.  The  first  scholars  were  twenty-one  young  negroes, 
sent  by  the  Governor  of  Sierra  Leone.  The  Abba  Grc'goire 
says,  "  I  visited  this  establishment  in  1802,  to  examine  the 
progress  of  the  scholars  ;  and  I  found  there  existed  no  differ- 
ence between  them  and  European  children,  except  that  of 
color.  The  same  observation  has  been  made,  first  at  Paris, 
in  the  ancient  college  of  La  Marche,  where  Coesnon,  pro- 
fessor of  the  University,  taught  a  number  of  colored  boys. 
Many  members  of  the  National  Institute,  who  have  carefully 
examined  this  college,  and  watched  the  progress  of  the  schol- 
ars in  their  particular  classes,  and  public  exercises,  will  testify 
to  the  truth  of  my  assertion." 

Correa  de  Serra,  the  learned  Secretary  of  the  Academy 
at  Portugal,  informs  us  that  several  negroes  have  been  able 
lawyers,  preachers,  and  professors. 

In  the  Soul  hern  States,  the  small  black  children  are  pro- 
verbially brighter  and  more  forward  than  white  ones  of  the 
same  age.  Repartees,  by  no  means  indicative  of  stupidity, 
have  sometimes  been  made  by  negroes.  A  slave  was  sud- 
denly roused  with  the  exclamation,  "  Why  don't  you  wake, 
when  your  master  calls  !"  The  negro  answered,  "  Sleep  lias 
no  master." 

On  a  public  day  the  New-England  Museum,  in  Boston,  was 
thronged  with  visitors  to  see  the  representation  of  the  Salem 
murder.  Some  colored  women  being  jostled  back  by  a  crowd 
of  <vhite  people,  expostulated  thus  :  "  Don't  you  know  it  is 
always  proper  to  let  the  mourners  walk  first?"  It  argues 
some  degree  of  philosophy  to  be  able  to  indulge  wit  at  the 
expense  of  what  is,  most  unjustly,  considered  a  degradation. 
Public  prejudice  shamefully  fetters  these  people  ;  and  it  has 
been  wisely  said,  "  If  we  cannot  break  our  chains,  the  next 
best  thing  we  can  do,  is  to  play  with  them."* 

Among  Bonaparte's  officers  there  was  a  mulatto  General 
of  Division,  named  Alexander  Dumas.  In  the  army  of  the 
Alps,  with  charged  bayonet,  he  ascended  St.  Bernard,  de- 

*  In  a  beautiful  little  volume  called  Mary's  Journey,  by  Francis 
Graeter. 


164  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

fonded  by  a  number  of  redoubts,  took  possession  of  the  ene- 
my's  cannon,  and  turned  their  own  ammunition  against  them. 
He  likewise  signalized  himself  in  the  expedition  to  Egypt. 
His  troop,  composed  of  blacks  and  mulattoes,  were  every, 
where  formidable.  Near  Lisle,  Alexander  Dumas,  with  only 
four  men,  attacked  a  post  of  fifty  Austrians,  killed  six,  and 
made  sixteen  prisoners.  Napoleon  called  him  the  Horatius 
Codes  of  the  Tyrols. 

On  his  return  from  Egypt,  Dumas  unluckily  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Neapolitan  government,  and  was  two  years 
kept  in  irons.  He  died  in  1807. 

Between  1620  and  1630,  some  fugitive  negroes,  united 
with  some  Brazilians,  formed  two  free  states  in  South  Amer- 
ica, called  the  Great  and  Little  Palmares;  so  named  on  ac- 
count of  the  abundance  of  palm  trees.  The  Great  Palmares 
was  nearly  destroyed  by  the  Hollanders,  in  1644 ;  but  at 
the  close  of  the  war,  the  slaves  in  the  neighborhood  of  Per- 
nanbouc,  resolved  to  form  an  establishment,  which  would 
secure  their  freedom.  Like  the  old  Romans,  they  obtained 
wives  by  making  incursions  upon  their  neighbors,  and  carry- 
ing  off  the  women. 

They  formed  a  constitution,  established  tribunals  of  jus- 
tice, and  adopted  a  form  of  worship  similar  to  Christianity. 
The  chiefs  chosen  for  life  were  elected  by  the  people. 

They  fortified  their  principal  towns,  cultivated  their  gar- 
dens and  fields,  and  reared  domestic  animals.  They  lived 
in  prosperity  and  peace,  until  1696,  when  the  Portuguese 
prepared  an  expedition  against  them.  The  Palmarisians  de- 
fended themselves  with  desperate  valor,  but  were  overcome 
by  supefior  numbers.  Some  rushed  upon  death,  that  they 
might  not  survive  their  liberty  ;  others  were  sold  and  dis- 
persed by  the  conquerors.  Thus  ended  this  interesting  re- 
public. Had  it  continued  to  the  present  time,  it  might  have 
produced  a  very  material  change  in  the  character  and  con- 
dition of  the  colored  race. 

In  the  seventeenth  century,  when  Jamaica  was  still  under 
the  dominion  of  the  Spaniards,  a  party  of  slaves  under  the 
command  of  John  de  Bolas,  regained  their  independence. 
They  increased  in  numbers,  elected  the  famous  Cudjoe  as 
their  chief,  and  became  very  formidable.  Cudjoe  established 
a  confederation  among  all  the  Maroon  tribes,  and  by  his 
bravery  and  skilful  management  compelled  the  English  to 
make  a  treaty,  in  which  they  acknowledged  the  freedom  of 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  165 

the  blacks,  and  ceded  to  them  for  ever  a  portion  of  the  terri- 
tory of  Jamaica. 

The  French  National  Assembly  admitted  free  colored 
deputies  from  St.  Domingo,  and  promised  a  perfect  equality 
of  rights,  without  regard  to  complexion.  But,  as  usual,  the 
white  colonists  made  every  possible  exertion  to  set  aside  the 
claims  of  their  darker-faced  brethren.  It  was  very  short- 
sighted  policy  ;  for  the  planters  absolutely  needed  the  friend- 
ship of  the  free  mulattoes  and  negroes,  as  a  defence  against 
the  slaves.  Oge,  one  of  the  colored  deputies,  an  energetic 
and  shrewd  man,  was  in  Paris,  watching  political  movements 
with  intense  interest, — resolved  to  maintain  the  rights  of  his 
oppressed  companions,  "  quietly  if  he  could — forcibly  if  he 
must."  Day  after  day,  a  hearing  was  promised  ;  and  day 
after  day,  upon  some  idle  pretext  or  other,  it  was  deferred. 
Oge  became  exasperated.  His  friends  in  France  recom- 
mended the  only  medicine  ever  offered  by  the  white  man  to 
the  heart-sick  African, — patience — patience.  But  he  had 
long  observed  the  operation  of  slavery,  and  he  knew  that 
patience,  whatever  it  might  do  for  the  white  man,  brought 
upon  the  negro  nothing  but  contempt  and  accumulated  wrong. 
Discouraged  in  his  efforts  to  make  head  against  the  intrigues 
of  the  slaveholders,  he  could  not  contain  his  indignation : 
"I  begin,"  said  he  to  Clarkson,  "not  to  care  whether  the 
National  Assembly  will  hear  us  or  not.  But  let  it  beware 
of  the  consequences.  We  will  no  longer  continue  to  be  held 
in  a  degraded  light.  Despatches  shall  go  directly  to  St.  Do- 
mingo ;  and  we  will  soon  follow  them.  We  can  produce  as 
good  soldiers  on  our  own  estates,  as  those  in  France.  Our 
own  arms  shall  make  us  independent  and  respectable.  If 
we  are  forced  to  desperate  measures,  it  will  be  in  vain  that 
thousands  are  sent  across  the  Atlantic  to  bring  us  back  to 
our  former  state." 

The  French  government  issued  orders  to  prevent  the 
embarkation  of  negroes  and  mulattoes ;  but  Oge,  by  the 
way  of  England,  contrived  to  return  to  St.  Domingo.  On 
his  arrival,  he  demanded  the  execution  of  decrees  made  in 
favor  of  his  brethren,  but  either  resisted  or  evaded  by  their 
white  oppressors.  His  plea,  founded  in  justice,  and  sanc- 
tioned by  Divine  authority,  was  rejected.  The  parties  be- 
came exasperated,  and  an  attack  ensued.  The  Spanish 
government  basely  and  wickedly  delivered  Oge  to  his  ene 
mics.  He  asked  for  a  defender  to  plead  his  cause ;  but  he 


166  INTELLECT  OF  NEGROES. 

asked  in  vain.  Thirteen  of  his  companions  were  condemned 
to  the  galleys ;  more  than  twenty  to  the  gibbet ;  and  Oge 
and  Chavanne  were  tortured  on  the  wheel. 

Where  rests  the  guilt  in  this  case?  Let  those  blame  Oge, 
who  can.  My  heart  and  conscience  both  refuse  to  do  it. 

Toussaint  L'Ouverture,  the  celebrated  black  chieftain,  was 
born  a  slave,  in  the  year  1745,  upon  the  plantation  of  Count 
de  Noe.  His  amiable  deportment  as  a  slave,  the  patience, 
mildness,  and  benevolence  of  his  disposition,  and  the  purity 
of  his  conduct  amid  the  general  laxity  of  morals  which  pre- 
vailed in  the  island,  gained  for  him  many  of  those  advantages 
which  afterwards  gave  him  such  absolute  ascendency  over 
his  insurgent  brethren.  His  good  qualities  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  M.  Bayou  de  Libertas,  the  agent  on  the  estate,  who 
taught  him  reading,  writing,  and  arithmetic, — elements  of 
knowledge,  which  hardly  one  in  ten  thousand  of  his  fellow- 
slaves  possessed.  M.  Bayou  made  him  his  postillion,  which 
gave  him  advantages  much  above  those  of  the  field  slaves. 
When  the  general  rising  of.  the  blacks  took  place,  in  1791, 
much  solicitation  was  used  to  induce  Toussaint  to  join  them  ; 
but  he  declined,  until  he  had  procured  an  opportunity  for  the 
escape  of  M.  Bayou  and  his  family  to  Baltimore,  shipping  a 
considerable  quantity  of  sugar  for  the  supply  of  their  imme- 
diate wants.  In  his  subsequent  prosperity,  he  availed  him- 
self of  every  occasion  to  give  them  now  marks  of  his  grati- 
tude. Having  thus  provided  security  for  his  benefactor,  he 
joined  a  corps  of  blacks,  under  the  orders  of  General  Bias- 
sou  ;  but  was  soon  raised  to  the  principal  command,  Biassou 
being  degraded  on  account  of  his  cruelty  and  ferocity.  In- 
deed, Toussaint  was  every  way  so  much  superior  to  the 
other  negroes,  by  reason  of  his  general  intelligence  and 
education,  his  prudence,  activity  and  address,  not  less  than 
his  bravery,  that  he  immediately  attained  a  complete  ascen- 
dency over  all  the  black  chieftains.  In  1797,  Toussaint 
received  from  the  French  government  a  commission  of 
General-in-Chief  of  the  armies  of  St.  Domingo,  and  as  such 
signed  the  convention  with  General  Maitland  for  the  evacu- 
ation of  the  island  by  the  British.  From  1798  until  1801, 
the  island  continued  tranquil  under  the  government  of  Tous- 
saint, who  adopted  and  enforced  the  most  judicious  measures 
for  healing  the  wounds  of  his  country,  and  restoring  its  com. 
mercial  and  agricultural  prosperity.  His  efforts  would  have 
been  attended  with  much  success,  but  for  the  ill-judged  expe- 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  167 

dition,  which  Bonaparte  sent  against  the  island,  under  the 
command  of  Le  Clerc.  This  expedition,  fruitless  as  it  was 
in  respect  of  its  general  object,  proved  fatal  to  the  negro 
chieftain. 

Toussaint  was  noted  for  private  virtues ;  among  the  rest, 
warm  affection  for  his  family.  Le  Clerc  brought  out  from 
France  Toussaint's  two  sons,  with  their  preceptor,  whose 
orders  were  to  carry  his  pupils  to  their  father,  and  make  use 
of  them  to  work  on  his  tenderness,  and  induce  him  to  aban- 
don his  countrymen.  If  he  yielded,  he  was  to  be  made  second 
in  command  to  Le  Clerc  ;  if  he  refused,  his  children  were 
to  be  reserved  as  hostages  of  his  fidelity  to  the  French. 
Notwithstanding  the  greatness  of  the  sacrifice  demanded  of 
him,  Toussaint  remained  faithful  to  his  brethren.  We  pass 
over  the  details  of  the  war,  which  at  length,  ended  in  a  treaty 
of  peace  concluded  by  Toussaint,  Dessalines  and  Christophe, 
against  their  better  judgment,  but  in  consequence  of  the 
effect  of  Le  Clerc's  professions  upon  their  simple  followers, 
who  were  induced  to  lay  down  their  arms.  Toussaint  retired 
to  "his  plantation,  relying  upon  the  solemn  assurances  of  Le 
Clerc,  that  his  person  and  property  should  be  held  sacred. 
Notwithstanding  these  assurances,  he  was  treacherously 
seized  in  the  night,  hurried  on  board  a  ship  of  war,  and  con- 
veyed to  Brest.  He  was  conducted  first  to  close  prison  in 
Chateaux  de  Joux,  and  from  thence  to  Besan^on,  where  he 
was  plunged  into  a  cold,  wet,  subterranean  prison,  which  soon 
proved  fatal  to  a  constitution  used  only  to  the  warm  skies 
and  free  air  of  the  West  Indies.  He  languished  through  the 
winter  of  1802-1803;  and  his  death,  which  happened  in 
April,  1803,  raised  a  cry  of  indignation  against  the  govern- 
ment, which  had  chosen  this  dastardly  method  of  destroying 
one  of  the  best  and  bravest  of  the  negro  race. 

Toussaint  L'Ouverture  is  thus  spoken  of  by  Vincent,  h 
his  Reflections  on  the  state  of  St.  Domingo :  "  Toussami 
L'Ouverture  is  the  most  active  and  indefatigable  man,  of 
whom  it  is  possible  to  form  an  idea.  Ho  is  always  present 
wherever  difficulty  or  danger  makes  his  presence  necessary. 
His  great  sobriety, — the  power  of  living  without  repose, — 
the  facility  with  which  he  resumes  the  affairs  of  the  cabinet, 
after  the  most  tiresome  excursions, — of  answering  daily  a 
hundred  letters, — and  of  habitually  tiring  five  secretaries — 
render  him  so  superior  to  all  around  him,  that  their  respect 
and  submission  almost  amount  to  fanaticism.  It  is  certain 


ssaint,  thou  most  unhappy  man  of  men  I 
;ther  the  whistling  rustic  tends  his  plough 


168  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

no  man  in  modern  times  has  obtained  such  an  influence  over 
a  mass  of  ignorant  people,  as  General  Toussairit  possesses 
over  his  brethren  of  St.  Domingo.  He  is  endowed  with  a 
prodigious  memory.  He  isagood  father  and  a  good  husband." 

Toussaint  re-established  religious  worship  in  St.  Domingo; 
and  on  account  of  his  zeal  in  this  respect,  a  certain  class  of 
men  called  him,  in  derision,  the  Capuchin. 

With  the  genius  and  energy  of  Bonaparte,  General  Tous- 
saint is  said  to  have  possessed  the  same  political  duplicity, 
and  far-sighted  cunning.  These  are  qualities  which  almost 
inevitably  grew  out  of  the  peculiar  circumstances  in  which 
they  were  placed,  and  the  obstacles  with  which  they  were 
obliged  to  contend. 

Wordsworth  addressed  the  following  sonnet  to  Toussaint 
L'Ouverture : 

"Toussaint 
Whether  tl 

Within  thy  hearing,  or  thou  liest  now 
Buried  in  some  deep  dungeon's  earless  den; — 
Oh,  miserable  chieftain !  where  and  when 
Wilt  thou  tind  patience  ?  Yet  die  not ;  do  thou 
Wear  rather  in  thy  bonds  a  cheerful  brow  : 
Though  fallen  thyself,  never  to  rise  again, 
Live,  and  take  comfort.     Thou  hast  left  behind 
Powers  that  will  work  for  thee  ;  air,  earth  and  skies ; 
There's  not  a  breathing  of  the  common  wind 
That  will  forget  thee ;  thou  hast  great  allies. 
Thy  friends  are  exultations,  agonies, 
And  love,  and  man's  unconquerable  mind." 

Godwin,  in  his  admirable  Lectures  on  Colonial  Slavery, 
says:  "Can  the  West  India  islands,  since  their  first  dis- 
covery by  Columbus,  boast  a  single  name  which  deserves 
comparison  with  that  of  Toussaint  L'Ouverture?" 

If  we  are  willing  to  see  and  believe,  we  have  full  oppor- 
tunity to  convince  ourselves  that  the  colored  population  are 
highly  susceptible  of  cultivation.  St.  Domingo  produces 
black  legislators,  scholars,  and  gentlemen.  The  very  negroes 
who  had  been  slaves,  formed  a  constitution  that  would  do 
credit  to  paler-faced  statesmen — Americans  may  well  blush 
at  its  consistent  republicanism. 

The  enemies  of  true  freedom  were  very  ready  to  predict 
that  the  government  of  Hayti  could  not  continue  for  any 
length  of  time  ;  but  it  has  now  lasted  nearly  thirty  years, 
constantly  increasing  in  respectability  and  wealth.  The 
affairs  of  Greece  have  been  managed  with  much  less  ability 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  169 

and  discretion,  though  all  the  cabinets  of  Europe  have  given 
assistance  and  advice,  St.  Domingo  achieved  her  indepen- 
dence alone  and  unaided — nay,  in  the  very  teeth  of  prejudice 
and  scorn.  The  Greeks  had  loans  from  England,  and  con- 
tributions  from  America,  and  sympathy  from  half  the  world ; 
the  decisive  battle  of  Navarino  was  gained  by  the  combined 
fleets  of  England,  France  and  Russia.  Is  it  asked  why  Hayti 
has  not  produced  any  examples  of  splendid  genius  ?  In  reply 
let  me  inquire,  how  long  did  the  Europeans  ridicule  us  for 
our  poverty  in  literature?  When  Raynal  reproached  the 
United  States  with  not  having  produced  one  celebrated  man, 
Jefferson  requested  him  to  wait  until  we  had  existed  "  as  long 
as  the  Greeks  before  they  had  a  Homer,  the  Romans  a  Vir- 
gil, and  the  French  a  Racine."  Half  a  century  elapsed 
before  our  republic  produced  Irving,  Cooper,  Sedgwick,  Hal- 
leek,  and  Bryant.  We  must  not  forget  that  the  cruel  pre- 
judice, under  which  colored  people  labor,  makes  it  extremely 
difficult  for  them  to  gain  admission  to  the  best  colleges  and 
schools ;  they  are  obliged  to  contend  with  obstacles,  which 
white  men  never  encounter. 

It  might  seem  wonderful  that  the  descendants  of  wise  Ethi- 
opia, and  learned  Egypt,  are  now  in  such  a  state  of  degra- 
dation, if  history  did  not  furnish  a  remarkable  parallel  in  the 
condition  of  the  modern  Greeks.  The  land  of  Homer,  Per- 
icles, and  Plato,  is  now  inhabited  by  ignorant,  brutal  pirates. 
Freedom  made*the  Grecians  great  and  glorious — tyranny 
has  made  them  stupid  and  miserable.  Yet  their  yoke  has 
been  light,  compared  with  African  bondage.  In  both  cases 
the  wrongs  of  the  oppressed  have  been  converted  into  an 
argument  against  them.  We  first  debase  the  nature  of  man 
by  making  him  a  slave,  and  then  very  coolly  tell  him  that 
he  must  always  remain  a  slave  because  he  does  not  know 
how  to  use  freedom.  We  first,  crush  people  to  the  earth, 
and  then  claim  the  right  of  trampling  on  them  for  ever,  be- 
cause they  are  prostrate.  Truly,  human  selfishness  never 
invented  a  rule,  which  worked  so  charmingly  both  ways ! 

No  one  thinks  of  doubting  the  intellect  of  Indians  ;  yet 
civilization  has  certainly  advanced  much  farther  in  the  inte- 
rior of  Africa,  than  it  did  among  the  North  American  tribes. 
The  Indians  have  strong  untutored  eloquence, — so  have  the 
Africans.  And  where  will  you  find  an  Indian  chieftain, 
whose  pride,  intellect,  and  valor,  are  more  than  a  match  for 
Zhinga's  ?  Both  of  these  classes  have  been  most  shamefully 

15 


170  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

wronged ;  but  public  prejudice,  which  bows  the  negro  to  the 
earth,  has  borne  with  a  far  less  crushing  power  upon  the 
energies  of  the  red  man ;  yet  they  have  not  produced  a 
Shakspeare  or  a  Newton.  But  I  shall  be  asked  how  it  is 
that  the  nations  of  Africa,  having  proceeded  so  far  in  the  arts 
of  civilization,  have  made  a  full  stop,  and  remained  century ' 
after  century  without  any  obvious  improvement  ?  I  will 
answer  this  by  another  question  :  How  long  did  the  ancient 
Helvetians,  Gauls,  and  Saxons,  remain  in  such  a  state  of 
barbarism,  that  what  they  considered  splendor  and  refine- 
ment, would  be  called  poverty  and  rudeness,  by  their  Ger- 
man, French,  and  English  descendants  ?  What  was  it  that 
changed  the  intellectual  and  moral  character  of  these  people, 
after  ages  of  ignorance  and  ferocity  ?  It  was  the  art  of  print- 
ing. But,  alas,  with  the  introduction  of  printing,  modern 
slavery  was  introduced  !  While  commerce  has  carried  books 
and  maps  to  other  portions  of  the  globe,  she  has  sent  kid. 
nappers,  with  guns  and  cutlasses  into  Africa.  We  have  not 
preached  the  Gospel  of  peace  to  her  princes  ;  we  have  in- 
cited them  to  make  war  upon  each  other,  to  fill  our  markets 
with  slaves.  While  knowledge,  like  a  mighty  pillar  of  fire, 
has  guided  the  European  nations  still  onward,  and  onward, 
a  dark  cloud  has  settled  more  and  more  gloomily  over  be- 
nighted Africa.  The  lessons  of  time,  the  experience  of  ages, 
from  which  we  have  learned  so  much,  are  entirely  lost  to 
this  vast  continent. 

I  have  heard  it  asserted  that  the  Indians  were  evidently 
superior  to  the  negroes,  because  it  was  impossible  to  enslave 
them.  Our  slave  laws  prove  that  there  are  some  exceptions 
to  this  remark  ;  and  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  Indians 
have  been  fairly  met  in-  buttle,  contending  with  but  one  na- 
tion at  a  time  ;  while  the  whole  world  have  combined  against 
the  Africans — sending  emissaries  to  lurk  for  them  in  secret 
places,  or  steal  them  at  midnight  from  their  homes.  The 
Indian  will  seek  freedom  in  the  arms  of  death — and  so  will 
the  negro.  By  thousands  and  thousands,  these  poor  people 
have  died  for  freedom.  They  have  stabbed  themselves  for 
freedom — jumped  into  the  waves  for  freedom — starved  for 
freedom — fought  like  very  tigers  for  freedom !  But  they 
have  been  hung,  and  burned,  and  shot — and  their  tyrants 
have  been  their  historians  !  When  the  Africans  have  writers 
of  their  own,  we  shall  hear  their  efforts  for  liberty  called 
by  the  true  title  of  heroism  in  a  glorious  cause.  We  are 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  171 

told  in  the  fable  that  a  lion,  looking  at  the  picture  of  one  of 
his  own  species,  conquered  and  trampled  on  by  man,  calmly 
said,  "  We  lions  have  no  painters/' 

I  shall  be  told  that  in  the  preceding  examples  I  have 
shown  only  the  bright  side  of  the  picture.  I  readily  grant 
it ;  but  I  have  deemed  it  important  to  show  that  the  picture 
has  a  bright  side.  I  am  well  aware  that  most  of  the  negro 
authors  are  remarkable  principally  because  they  are  negroes. 
With  considerable  talent,  they  generally  evince  bad  taste. 
I  do  not  pretend  that  they  are  Scotls  or  Miltons ;  but  I  wish 
to  prove  that,  they  are  men,  capable  of  producing  their  pro- 
portion of  Scotts  and  Miltons,  if  they  could  be  allowed  to  live 
in  a  state  of  physical  and  intellectual  freedom.  But  where, 
at  the  present  time,  can  they  live  in  perfect  freedom,  cheered 
by  the  hopes  and  excited  by  the  rewards,  which  stimulate 
white  men  to  exertion  ?  Every  avenue  to  distinction  is  closed 
to  them.  Even  where  the  body  is  suffered  to  be  free,  a 
hateful  prejudice  keeps  the  soul  in  fetters.  I  think  every 
candid  mind  must  admit  that  it  is  more  wonderful  they  have 
done  so  much,  than  that  they  have  done  no  more. 

As  a  class,  I  am  aware  that  the  negroes,  with  many  hon- 
orable exceptions,  are  ignorant,  and  show  little  disposition 
to  be  otherwise ;  but  this  ceases  to  be  the  case  just  in  pro- 
portion  as  they  are  free.  The  fault  is  in  their  unnatural 
situation,  not  in  themselves.  Tyranny  always  dwarfs  the 
intellect.  Homer  tells  us,  that  when  Jupiter  condemns  aman 
to  slavery,  he  takes  from  him  half  his  mind.  A  family 
of  children  treated  with  habitual  violence  or  contempt,  be- 
come stupid  and  sluggish,  and  are  called  fools  by  the  very 
parents  or  guardians  who  have  crushed  their  mental  energies. 
It  was  remarked  by  M.  Dupuis,  the  British  Consul  at  Mog- 
adore,  that  the  generality  of  Europeans,  after  a  long  cap- 
tivity and  severe  treatment  among  the  Arabs,  seemed  at  first 
exceedingly  dull  and  insensible.  "  If  they  had  been  any 
considerable  time  in  slavery,"  says  he,  "  they  appeared  lost 
to  reason  and  feeling ;  their  spirits  broken ;  and  their  facul- 
ties sunk  in  a  species  of  stupor,  which  I  am  unable  adequately 
to  describe.  They  appeared  degraded  even  below  the  ne- 
gro slave.  The  succession  of  hardships,  without  any  pro- 
tecting law  to  which  they  can  appeal  for  alleviation,  or 
redress,  seems  to  destroy  every  spring  of  exertion,  or  hope 
in  their  minds.  They  appear  indifferent  to  every  thing 
around  them ;  abject,  servile,  and  brutish." 


172  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

Lieutenant  Hall,  in  his  Travels  in  the  United  States,  makes 
the  following  just  remark  :  "  Cut  off  hope  for  the  future,  and 
freedom  for  the  present ;  superadd  a  due  pressure  of  bodily 
suffering,  and  personal  degradation  ;  and  you  have  a  slave, 
who,  (of  whatever  zone,  nation  or  complexion,)  will  be  what 
the  poor  African  is,  torpid,  debased,  and  lowered  beneath  the 
standard  of  humanity." 

The  great  Virginian,  Patrick  Henry,  who  certainly  had 
a  fair  chance  to  observe  the  effects  of  slavery,  says,  "  If  a 
man  be  in  chains,  he  droops  and  bows  to  the  earth,  because 
his  spirits  are  broken ;  but  let  him  twist  the  fetters  off  his 
legs  and  he  will  stand  erect." 

The  following  is  the  testimony  of  the  Rev.  R.  Walsh,  on 
the  same  subject ;  he  is  describing  his  first  arrival  at  Rio 
Janeiro : 

"  The  whole  labor  of  bearing  and  moving  burdens  is  per- 
formed by  these  people,  and  the  state  in  which  they  appear 
is  revolting  to  humanity.  Here  were  a  number  of  beings 
entirely  naked,  with  the  exception  of  a  covering  of  dirty 
rags,  tied  about  their  waists.  Their  skins,  from  constant  ex- 
posure to  the  weather,  had  become  hard,  crusty,  and  seamed, 
resembling  the  coarse  black  covering  of  some  beast,  or  like 
that  of  an  elephant,  a  wrinkled  hide  scattered  with  scanty 
hairs.  On  contemplating  their  persons,  you  saw  them  with 
a  physical  organization  resembling  beings  of  a  grade  below 
the  rank  of  man ;  long  projecting  heels,  the  gastronymic 
muscle  wanting,  and  no  calves  to  their  legs  ;  their  mouths 
and  chins  protruded,  their  noses  flat,  their  foreheads  retiring, 
having  exactly  the  head  and  legs  of  the  baboon  tribe.  Some 
of  these  beings  were  yoked  to  drays,  on  which  they  dragged 
heavy  burdens.  Some  were  chained  by  the  neck  and  legs, 
and  moved  with  loads  thus  encumbered.  Some  followed 
each  other  in  ranks,  with  heavy  weights  on  their  heads,  chat- 
tering in  the  most  inarticulate  and  dismal  cadence  as  they 
moved  along.  Some  were  munching  young  sugar-canes, 
like  beasts  of  burden  eating  green  provender ;  and  some 
were  seen  near  the  water,  lying  on  the  bare  ground  among 
filth  and  offal,  coiled  up  like  dogs,  and  seeming  to  expect  or 
require  no  more  comfort  or  accommodation,  exhibiting  a 
state  and  conformation  so  unhuman,  that  they  not  only  seemed 
but  actually  were,  far  below  the  inferior  animals  around 
them.  Horses  and  mules  were  not  employed  in  this  way  ; 
they  were  used  only  for  pleasure,  and  not  labor.  They 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  173 

were  seen  in  the  same  streets,  pampered,  spirited,  and  richly 
caparisoned,  enjoying  a  state  far  superior  to  the  negroes, 
and  appearing  to  look  down  on  the  fettered  and  burdened 
wretches  they  were  passing,  as  on  beings  of  an  inferior  rank 
in  the  creation.  Some  of  the  negroes  actually  seemed  to 
envy  the  caparisons  of  their  fellow-brutes,  and  eyed  with 
jealousy  their  glittering  harness.  In  imitation  of  this  finery, 
they  were  fond  of  thrums  of  many. colored  threads ;  and  I 
saw  one  creature,  who  supported  the  squalid  rag  that  wrap- 
ped his  waist  by  a  suspender  of  gaudy  worsted,  which  he 
turned  every  moment  to  look  at  on  his  naked  shoulder.  The 
greater  number,  however,  were  as  unconscious  of  any  cov- 
ering for  use  or  ornament,  as  a  pig  .or  an  ass. 

"  The  first  impression  of  all  this  on  my  mind,  was  to  shake 
the  conviction  I  had  always  felt,  of  the  wrong  and  hardship 
inflicted  on  our  black  fellow-creatures,  and  that  they  were 
only  in  that  state  which  God  and  nature  had  assigned  them  ; 
that  they  were  the  lowest  grade  of  human  existence,  and  the 
link  that  connected  it  with  the  brute  ;  and  that  the  gradation 
was  so  insensible,  and  their  natures  so  intermingled,  that  it 
was  impossible  to  tell  where  one  had  terminated  and  the 
other  commenced  ;  and  that  it  was  not  surprising  that  peo- 
ple who  contemplated  them  every  day,  so  formed,  so  em- 
ployed, and  so  degraded,  should  forget  their  claims  to  that 
rank  in  the  scale  of  being  in  which  modern  philanthropists 
are  so  anxious  to  place  them.  I  did  not  at  the  moment 
myself  recollect,  that  the  white  man,  made  a  slave  on  the 
coast  of  Africa,  suffers  not  only  a  similar  mental  but  physical 
deterioration  from  hardships  and  emaciation,  and  becomes  in 
time  the  dull  and  deformed  beast  I  now  saw  yoked  to  a 
burden. 

"  A  few  hours  only  were  necessary  to  correct  my  first 
impressions  of  the  negro  population,  by  seeing  them  under  a 
different  aspect.  We  were  attracted  by  the  sound  of  mili- 
tary music,  and  found  it  proceeded  from  a  regiment  drawn 
up  in  one  of  the  streets.  Their  colonel  had  just  died,  and 
they  attended  to  form  a  procession  to  celebrate  his  obse- 
quies. They  were  all  of  different  shades  of  black,  but  the 
majority  were  negroes.  Their  equipment  was  excellent ; 
they  wore  dark  jackets,  white  pantaloons,  and  black  leather 
caps  and  belts,  all  which,  with  their  arms,  were  in  high  order. 
Their  band  produced  sweet  and  agreeable  music,  of  the 
leader's  own  composition,  and  the  men  went  through  some 
15* 


174  INTELLECT  OF  NEGROES. 

evolutions  with  regularity  and  dexterity.  They  were  only 
a  militia  regiment,  yet  were  as  well  appointed  and  disciplined 
as  one  of  our  regiments  of  the  line.  Here  then  was  the  first 
step  in  that  gradation  by  which  the  black  population  of  this 
country  ascend  in  the  scale  of  humanity ;  he  advances  from 
the  state  below  that  of  a  beast  of  burden  into  a  military  rank, 
and  he  shows  himself  as  capable  of  discipline  and  improvement 
as  a  human  being  of  any  other  color. 

"  Our  attention  was  next  attracted  by  negro  men  and 
women  bearing  about  a  variety  of  articles  for  sale;  some  in 
baskets,  some  on  boards  and  cases  carried  on  their  heads. 
They  belonged  to  a  class  of  small  shopkeepers,  many  of 
whom  vend  their  wares  at  home,  but  the  greater  number  send 
them  about  in  this  way,  as  in  itinerant  shops.  A  few  of 
these  people  were  still  in  a  state  of  bondage,,  and  brought  a 
certain  sum  every  evening  to  their  owners,  as  the  produce 
of  their  daily  labor.  But  a  large  proportion,  I  was  informed, 
were  free,  and  exercised  this  little  calling  on  their  own  ac- 
count. They  were  all  very  neat  and  clean  in  their  persons, 
and  had  a  decorum  and  sense  of  respectability  about  them, 
superior  to  whites  of  the  same  class  and  calling.  All  their 
articles  were  good  in  their  kind  and  neatly  kept,  and  they 
sold  them  with  simplicity  and  confidence,  neither  wishing  to 
take  advantage  of  others,  nor  suspecting  that  it  would  be 
taken  of  themselves.  I  bought  some  confectionary  from  one 
of  the  females,  and  I  was  struck  with  the  modesty  and  pro- 
priety  of  her  manner ;  she  was  a  young  mother,  arid  had 
with  her  a  neatly-dressed  child,  of  which  she  seemed  very- 
fond.  I  gave  it  a  little  comfit,  and  it  turned  up  its  dusky 
countenance  to  her  and  then  to  me,  taking  my  sweetmeat 
and  at  the  same  time  kissing  my  hand.  As  yet  unacquainted 
with  the  coin  of  the  country,  I  had  none  that  was  current 
about  me,  and  was  leaving  the  articles  ;  but  the  poor  young 
woman  pressed  them  on  me  with  a  ready  confidence,  repeat- 
ing in  broken  Portuguese,  onto  tempo.  I  am  sorry  to  say, 
the  l  other  time'  never  came,  for  I  could  not  recognise  her 
person  afterwards  to  discharge  her  little  debt,  though  I  went 
to  the  same  place  for  the  purpose. 

"  It  soon  began  to  grow  dark,  and  I  was  attracted  by  a 
number  of  persons  bearing  large  lighted  wax  tapers,  like 
torches,  gathering  before  a  house.  As  I  passed  by,  one  was 
put  into  my  hand  by  a  man  who  seemed  in  some  authority, 
and  I  was  requested  to  fall  into  a  procession  that  was  form- 


INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES.  175 

ing.  It  was  the  preparation  for  a  funeral,  and  on  such  occa- 
sions, I  learned  that  they  always  request  the  attendance  of  a 
passing  stranger,  and  feel  hurt  if  they  are  refused.  I  joined 
the  party,  and  proceeded  with  them  to  a  neighboring  church. 
When  we  entered  we  ranged  ourselves  on  each  side  of  a  plat- 
form which  stood  near  the  choir,  on  which  was  laid  an  open 
coffin,  covered  with  pink  silk  and  gold  borders.  The  funeral 
service  was  chanted  by  a  choir  of  priests,  one  of  whom  was 
a  negro,  a  large  comely  man,  whose  jet-black  visage  formed 
a  strong  and  striking  contrast  to  his  white  vestments.  He 
seemed  to  perform  his  part  with  a  decorum  arid  sense  of  so- 
lemnity, which  I  did  not  observe  in  his  brethren.  After  scat- 
tering flowers  on  the  coffin,  and  fumigating  it  with  incense,  they 
retired,  the  procession  dispersed,  and  we  returned  on  board. 
"I  had  been  but  a  few  hours  on  shore  for  the  first  time, 
and  I  saw  an  African  negro  under  four  aspects  of  society; 
and  it  appeared  to  me,  that  in  every  one,  his  character  de- 
pended on  the  state  in  which  he  was  placed,  and  the  estima- 
tion in  which  he  was  held.  As  a  despised  slave,  he  was  far 
lower  than  other  animals  of  burden  that  surrounded  him ; 
more  miserable  in  his  look,  more  revolting  in  his  nakedness, 
more  distorted  in  his  person,  and  apparently  more  deficient 
in  intellect,  than  the  horses  and  mules  that  passed  him  by. 
Advanced  to  the  grade  of  a  soldier,  he  was  clean  and  neat 
in  his  person,  amenable  to  discipline,  expert  at  his  exercises, 
and  showed  the  port  arid  bearing  of  a  white  man  similarly 
placed.  As  a  citizen,  he  was  remarkable  for  the  respecta- 
bility of  his  appearance,  and  the  decorum  of  his  manners  in 
the  rank  assigned  him  ;  and  as  a  priest,  standing  in  the  house 
of  God,  appointed  to  instruct  society  on  their  most  important 
interests,  and  in  a  grade  in  which  moral  and  intellectual  fit- 
ness is  required,  and  a  certain  degree  of  superiority  is  ex- 
pected, he  seemed  even  more  devout  in  his  impressions,  and 
more  correct  in  his  manners,  than  his  white  associates.  I 
came,  therefore,  to  the  irresistible  conclusion  in  my  mind, 
that  color  was  an  accident  affecting  the  surface  of  a  man, 
and  having  no  more  to  do  with  his  qualities  than  his  clothes 
— that  God  had  equally  created  an  African  in  the  image  of 
his  person,  and  equally  given  him  an  immortal  soul  ;  and 
that  a  European  had  no  pretext  but  his  own  cupidity,  for 
impiously  thrusting  his  fellow-man  from  that  rank  in  the 
creation  which  the  Almighty  had  assigned  him,  and  degrad- 
ing  him  below  the  lot  of  the  brute  beasts  that  perish." 


176  INTELLECT    OF    NEGROES. 

The  honorable  A.  H.  Everett,  in  his  able  work  on  the  polit- 
ical situation  of  America,  says,  "  Nations,  and  races,  like 
individuals,  have  their  day,  and  seldom  have  a  second.  The 
blacks  had  a  long  and  glorious  one ;  and  after  what  they 
have  been  and  done,  it  argues  not  so  much  a  mistaken  theory, 
as  sheer  ignorance  of  the  most  notorious  historical  facts,  to 
pretend  that  they  are  naturally  inferior  to  the  whites.  It 
would  seem  indeed,  that  if  any  race  have  a  right  claim  to  a 
sort  of  pre-eminence  over  others,  on  the  fair  and  honorable 
ground  of  talents  displayed,  and  benefits  conferred,  it  is  pre- 
cisely this  very  one,  which  we  take  upon  us,  in  the  pride  of 
a  temporary  superiority,  to  stamp  with  the  brand  of  essential 
degradation.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  add,  that  while  the 
blacks  were  the  leading  race  in  civilization  and  political 
power,  there  was  no  prejudice  among  the  whites  against 
their  color.  On  the  contrary,  we  find  that  the  early  Greeks 
regarded  them  as  a  superior  variety  of  the  human  species, 
not  only  in  intellectual  and  moral  qualities,  but  in  outward 
appearance.  '  The  Ethiopians,'  says  Herodotus,  *  surpass 
all  other  men  in  longevity,  stature,  and  personal  beauty.'  " 

Then  let  the  slaveholder  no  longer  apologize  for  himself 
by  urging  the  stupidity  and  sensuality  of  negroes.  It  is  upon 
the  system,  which  thus  transforms  men  into  beasts,  that  the 
reproach  rests  in  all  its  strength  and  bitterness.  And  even 
if  the  ne'groes  were,  beyond  all  doubt,  our  inferiors  in  intel- 
lect, this  would  form  no  excuse  for  oppression,  or  contempt. 
The  use  of  law  and  public  opinion  is  to  protect  the  weak 
against  the  strong ;  and  the  government,  which  perverts 
these  blessings  into  means  of  tyranny,  resembles  the  priest, 
who  administered  poison  with  the  Holy  Sacrament. 

Is  there  an  American  willing  that  the  intellectual  and  the 
learned  should  bear  despotic  sway  over  the  simple  and  the 
ignorant  ?  If  there  be  such  a  one,  he  may  consistently  vin- 
dicate our  treatment  of  the  Africans. 


MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES.        177 


CHAPTER  VII. 

MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 


"  Fleecy  locks  and  black  complexion 

Cannot  forfeit  Nature's  claim ; 
Skins  may  differ,  but  affection 

Dwells  in  black  and  white  the  same. 

"  Slaves  of  gold !  whose  sordid  dealings 

Tarnish  all  your  boasted  powers, 
Prove  thai  you  have  human  feelings, 

Ere  you  proudly  question  ours." 

THE  NEGRO'S  COMPLAINT  ;  BY  COWPEB 


THE  opinion  that  negroes  are  naturally  inferior  in  intel- 
lect is  almost  universal  among  white  men ;  but  the  belief 
that  they  are  worse  than  other  people,  is,  I  believe,  much 
less  extensive  :  indeed,  I  have  heard  some,  who  were  by  no 
means  admirers  of  the  colored  race,  maintain  that  they  were 
very  remarkable  for  kind  feelings,  and  strong  affections. 
Homer  calls  the  ancient  Ethiopians  "  the  most  honest  of 
men;"  and  modern  travellers  have  given  innumerable  in- 
stances of  domestic  tenderness,  and  generous  hospitality  in 
the  interior  of  Africa.  Mungo  Park  informs  us  that  he  found 
many  schools  in  his  progress  through  the  country,  and  ob- 
served with  pleasure  the  great  docility  and  submissive  deport- 
ment of  the  children,  and  heartily  wished  they  had  better 
instructors  and  a  purer  religion. 

The  following  is  an  account  of  his  arrival  at  Jumbo,  in, 
company  with  a  native  of  that  place,  who  had  been  absent 
several  years :  "  The  meeting  between  the  blacksmith  and  his 
relations  was  very  tender ;  for  these  rude  children  of  nature, 
free  from  restraint,  display  their,,  emotions  in  the  strongest 
and  most  expressive  manner.  Amidst  these  transports,  the 
aged  mother,  was  led  forth,  leaning  upon  a  staff.  Every 
one  made  way  for  her,  and  she  stretched  out  her  hand  to  bid 
her  son  welcome.  Being  totally  blind,  she  stroked  his  hands, 
arms,  and  face,  with  great  care,  and  seemed  highly  delighted 
that  her  latter  days  were  blessed  by  his  return,  and  that  her 


178        MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

ears  once  more  heard  the  music  of  his  voice.  From  this 
interview,  I  was  fully  convinced,  that  whatever  difference 
there  is  between  the  negro  and  the  European,  in  the  confer- 
mation  of  the  nose,  and  the  color  of  the  skin,  there  is  none 
in  the  genuine  sympathies  and  characteristic  feelings  of  our 
common  nature." 

At  a  small  town  in  the  interior,  called  Wawra,  he  says, 
"  In  the  course  of  the  day,  several  women,  hearing  that  I 
was  going  to  Sego,  came  and  begged  me  to  inquire  of  Man- 
song,  the  king,  what  was  become  of  their  children.  One 
woman,  in  particular,  told  me  that  her  son's  name  was  Ma- 
madee ;  that  he  was  no  heathen  ;  but  prayed  to  God  morn- 
ing and  evening  ;  that  he  had  been  taken  from  her  about 
three  years  ago  by  Mansong's  army,  since  which  she  had 
never  heard  from  him.  She  said  she  often  dreamed  about 
him,  and  begged  me,  if  I  should  see  him  in  Bambarra,  or  in 
my  own  country,  to  tell  him  that  his  mother  and  sister  were 
still  alive." 

At  Sego,  in  Bambarra,  the  king,  being  jealous  of  Mr. 
Park's  intentions,  forbade  him  to  cross  the  river.  Under 
these  discouraging  circumstances,  he  was  advised  to  lodge 
at  a  distant  village  ;  but  there  the  same  distrust  of  the  white 
man's  purposes  prevailed,  and  no  person  would  allow  him  to 
enter  his  house.  He  says,  "  I  was  regarded  with  astonish- 
ment and  fear,  and  was  obliged  to  sit  all  day  without  food, 
under  the  shade  of  a  tree.  The  wind  rose,  and  there  was 
great  appearance  of  a  heavy  rain,  and  the  wild  beasts  are  so 
very  numerous  in  the  neighborhood,  that  I  should  have  beep 
under  the  necessity  of  resting  among  the  branches  of  the  tree. 
About  sunset,  however,  as  I  was  preparing  to  pass  the  night 
in  this  manner,  and  had  turned  my  horse  loose,  that  he  might 
graze  at  liberty,  a  woman,  returning  from  the  labors  of  the 
field,  stopped  to  observe  me.  Perceiving  that  I  was  weary 
and  dejected,  she  inquired  into  my  situation,  which  I  briefly 
explained  to  her ;  whereupon,  with  looks  of  great  compas- 
sion, she  took  up  my  saddle  and  bridle  and  told  me  to  follow 
her.  Having  conducted  me  into  her  hut,  she  lighted  a  lamp, 
spread  a  mat  on  the  floor,  and  told  me  I  might  remain  there 
for  the  night.  Finding  that  I  was  hungry,  she  went  out,  and 
soon  returned  with  a  very  fine  fish,  which  being  broiled  upon 
some  embers,  she  gave  me  for  supper.  The  women  then 
resumed  their  task  of  spinning  cotton,  and  lightened  their 
labor  with  songs,  one  of  which  must  have  been  composed 


MORAL    CHARACTER    OF   NEGROES. 


179 


180        MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

extempore,  for  I  was  myself  the  subject  of  it.  It  was  sung 
by  one  of  the  young  women,  the  rest  joining  in  a  kind  of 
chorus.  The  air  was  sweet  and  plaintive,  and  the  words 
literally  translated,  were  these  : 

"  The  winds  roar'd,  and  the  rains  fell ; 
The  poor  white  man,  faint  and  weary, 
Came  and  sat  under  our  tree.— 
He  has  no  mother  to  bring  him  milk  ; 
No  wife  to  grind  his  corn. 
CHORUS. 

"Let  us  pity  the  white  man  ; 
No  mother  has  he  to  bring  him  milk, 
No  wife  to  grind  his  corn." 

The  reader  can  fully  sympathize  with  this  intelligent  and 
liberal-minded  traveller,  when  he  observes,  "  Trifling  as  this 
recital  may  appear,  the  circumstance  was  highly  affecting  to 
a  person  in  my  situation.  I  was  oppressed  with  such  unex- 
pected kindness,  and  sleep  fled  from  my  eyes.  In  the  morn- 
ing, I  presented  my  compassionate  landlady  with  two  of  the 
four  brass  buttons  lemaining  on  my  waistcoat ;  the  only  rec- 
ompense I  could  make  her." 

The  Duchess  of  Devonshire,  whose  beauty  and  talent 
gained  such  extensive  celebrity,  was  so  much  pleased  with 
this  African  song,  and  the  kind  feelings  in  which  it  origina- 
ted," that  she  put  it  into  English  verse,  and  employed  an  emi- 
nent composer  to  set  it  to  music  : 

The  loud  wind  roar'd,  the  rain  fell  fast  j 
The  white  man  yielded  to  the  blast ; 
He  sat  him  down  beneath  our  tree, 
For  weary,  faint,  and  sad  was  he ; 
And  ah,  no  wife  or  mother's  carey 
For  him  the  milk  or  corn  prepare. 

CHORtrS. 

The  white  man  shall  our  pity  share ; 
Alas !  no  wife,  or  mother's  care, 
For  him  the  milk  or  corn  prepare. 

The  storm  is  o'er,  the  tempest  past, 
And  mercy's  voice  has  hush'd  the  blast ; 
The  wind  is  heard  in  whispers  low  ; 
The  white  man  far  away  must  go  5 — 
But  ever  in  his  heart  will  bear 
Remembrance  of  the  negro's  care. 

CHORUS. 

Go,  white  man,  go — but  with  thee  bear 
The  negro's  wish,  the  negro's  prayer, 
Remembrance  of  the  negro's  care. 


MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES.        181 

At  another  time,  Mr.  Park  thus  continues  his  narrative  : 
"  A  little  before  sunset,  I  descended  on  the  northwest  side  of 
a  ridge  of  hills,  and  as  I  was  looking  about  for  a  convenient 
tree,  under  which  to  pass  the  night,  (for  I  had  no  hopes  of 
reaching  any  town)  I  descended  into  a  delightful  valley,  and 
soon  afterward  arrived  at  a  romantic  village  called  Kooma. 
I  was  immediately  surrounded  by  a  circle  of  the  harmless 
villagers.  They  asked  me  a  thousand  questions  about  my 
country,  and  in  return  for  my  information  brought  corn  and 
milk  for  myself,  and  grass  for  my  horse ;  kindled  a  fire  in 
the  hut  where  I  was  to  sleep,  and  appeared  very  anxious  to 
serve  me." 

Afterward,  being  robbed  and  stripped  by  a  banditti  in  the 
wilderness,  he  informs  us  that  the  robbers  stood  considering 
whether  they  should  leave  him  quite  destitute  ;  even  in  their 
minds,  humanity  partially  prevailed  over  avarice  ;  they  re- 
turned the  worst  of  two  shirts,  and  a  pair  of  trowsers  ;  and 
as  they  went  away,  one  of  them  threw  back  his  hat.  At 
the  next  village,  Mr.  Park  entered  a  complaint  to  the  Dooty, 
or  chief  man,  who  continued  very  calmly  smoking  while  he 
listened  to  the  narration  ;  but  when  he  had  heard  all  the  par- 
ticulars, he  took  the  pipe  from  his  mouth,  and  tossing  up  the 
sleeve  of  his  cloak  with  an  indignant  air,  he  said,  "  You  shall 
have  every  thing  restored  to  you — I  have  sworn  it."  Then, 
turning  to  an  attendant,  he  added,  "  Give  the  white  man  a 
draught  of  water  ;  and  with  the  first  light  of  morning  go 
over  the  hills,  and  inform  the  Dooty  of  Bammakoo,  that  a 
poor  white  man,  the  king  of  Bambarra's  stranger,  has  been 
robbed  by  the  king  of  Foolodoo's  people."  He  then  invited 
the  traveller  to  remain  with  him,  and  share  his  provisions, 
until  the  messenger  returned.  Mr.  Park  accepted  the  kind 
offer  most  gratefully  :  and  in  a  few  days  his  horse  and 
clothes  were  restored  to  him. 

At  the  village  of  Nemacoo,  where  corn  was  so  scarce  that 
the  people  were  actually  in  a  state  of  starvation,  a  negro 
pitied  his  distress  and  brought  him  food. 

At  Kamalia,  Mr.  Park  was  earnestly  dissuaded  by  an 
African  named  Karfa,  from  attempting  to  cross  the  Jalonka 
wilderness  during  the  rainy  season  ;  to  which  he  replied  that 
there  was  no  alternative — for  he  was  so  poor,  that  he  must 
either  beg  his  subsistence  from  place  to  place,  or  perish  with 
hunger.  'Karfa  eagerly  inquired  if  he  could  eat  the  food  of 
the  country,  adding  that,  if  he  would  stay  with  him,  he  should 

16 


182        MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

have  plenty  of  victuals,  and  a  hut  to  sleep  in  ;  and  that  after 
he  had  been  safely  conducted  to  the  Gambia,  he  might  make 
what  return  he  thought  proper.  He  was  accordingly  pro- 
vided with  a  mat  to  sleep  on,  an  earthern  jar  for  holding 
water,  a  small  calabash  for  a  drinking  cup,  and  two  meals  a 
day,  with  a  supply  of  wood  and  water,  from  Karfa's  own 
.  dwelling.  Here  he  recovered  from  a  fever,  which  had  tor- 
mented  him  several  weeks.  His  benevolent  landlord  came 
daily  to  inquire  after  his  health,  and  see  that  he  had  every 
thing  for  his  comfort.  Mr.  Park  assures  us  that  the  simple 
and  affectionate  manner  of  those  around  him  contributed  not 
a  little  to  his  recovery.  He  adds,  "  Thus  was  I  delivered, 
by  the  friendly  care  of  this  benevolent  negro,  from  a  situa- 
tion truly  deplorable.  Distress  and  famine  pressed  hard  upon 
me  ;  I  had  before  me  the  gloomy  wilderness  of  Jallonkadoo, 
where  the  traveller  sees  no  habitation  for  five  successive  days. 
I  had  observed,  at  a  distance,  the  rapid  course  of  the  river 
Kokaro,  and  had  almost  marked  out  the  place  where  I  thought 
I  was  doomed  to  perish,  when  this  friendly  negro  stretched 
out  his  hospitable  hand  for  my  relief."  Mr.  Park  having 
travelled  in  company  with  a  coffle  of  thirty-five  slaves,  thus 
describes  his  feelings  as  they  came  near  the  coast :  "  Al- 
though 1  was  now  approaching  the  end  of  my  tedious  and 
toilsome  journey,  and  expected  in  another  day  to  meet  with 
countrymen  and  friends,  I  could  not  part  with  my  unfortu- 
nate fellow-travellers, — doomed  as  I  knew  most  of  them  to 
be,  to  a  life  of  slavery  in  a  foreign  land, — without  great 
emotion.  During  a  peregrination  of  more  than  five  hundred 
miles,  exposed  to  the  burning  rays  of  a  tropical  sun,  these 
poor  slaves,  amidst  their  own  infinitely  greater  sufferings, 
would  commiserate  mine,  and  frequently,  of  their  own  ac- 
cord, bring  water  to  quench  my  thirst,  and  at  night  collect 
branches  and  leaves  to  prepare  me  a  bed  in  the  wilderness. 
We  parted  with  mutual  regret  and  blessings.  My  good 
wishes  and  prayers  were  all  I  could  bestow  upon  them,  and 
it  afforded  me  some  consolation  to  be  told  that  they  were  sen- 
sible I  had  no  more  to  give." 

The  same  enlightened  traveller  remarks,  "  All  the  negro 
nations  that  fell  under  my  observation,  though  divided  into 
a  number  of  petty,  independent  states,  subsist  chiefly  by  the 
same  means,  live  nearly  in  the  same  temperature,  and  pos- 
sess a  wonderful  similarity  of  disposition.  The  Mandingoes. 
in  particular,  are  a  very  gentle  race,  cheerful,  inquisitive, 


MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES.        183 

credulous,  simple,  and  fond  of  flattery.  Perhaps  the  most 
prominent  defect  in  their  character,  was  that  insurmountable 
propensity,  which  the  reader  must  have  observed  to  prevail 
in  all  classes,  to  steal  from  me  the  few  effects  I  was  possessed 
of.  No  complete  justification  can  be  offered  for  this  conduct, 
because  theft  is  a  crime  in  their  own  estimation  ;  and  it  must 
be  observed  that  they  are  not  habitually  and  generally  guilty 
of  it  towards  each  other.  But  before  we  pronounce  them  a 
more  depraved  people  than  any  other,  it  were  well  to  con- 
sider, whether  the  lower  class  of  people  in  any  part  of  Eu- 
rope, would  have  acted,  under  similar  circumstances,  with 
greater  honesty  towards  a  stranger.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  the  laws  of  the  country  afforded  me  no  protection ;  that 
every  one  was  permitted  to  rob  me  with  impunity ;  and  that 
some  part  of  my  effects  were  of  as  great  value  in  the  estima- 
tion of  the  negroes,  as  pearls  and  diamonds  would  have  been- 
in  the  eyes  of  a  European.  Let  us  suppose  a  black  merchant 
of  Hindostan  had  found  his  way  into  England,  with  a  box 
of  jewels  at  his  back,  and  the  laws  of  the  kingdom  afforded 
him  no  security — in  such  a  case,  the  wonder  would  be,  not 
that  the  stranger  was  robbed  of  any  part  of  his  riches,  but 
that  any  part  was  left  for  a  second  depredator.*  Such,  on 
sober  reflection,  is  the  judgment  [  have  formed  concerning 
the  pilfering  disposition  of  the  Mandingo  negroes  toward  me. 
"  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  impossible  for  me  to  forget  the 
disinterested  charity,  and  tender  solicitude,  with  which  many 
of  these  poor  heathens,  from  the  sovereign  of  Sego,  to  the 
poor  women,  who  at  different  times  received  me  into  their 
cottages,  sympathized  with  my  sufferings,  relieved  my  dis- 
tress, and  contributed  to  my  safety.  Perhaps  this  acknow- 
ledgment is  more  particularly  due  to  the  female  part  of  the 
nation.  Among  the  men,  as  the  reader  must  have  seen,  my 
reception,  though  generally  kind,  was  sometimes  otherwise. 
It  varied  according  to  the  tempers  of  those  to  whom  I  made 
application.  Avarice  in  some,  and  bigotry  in  others,  had 
closed  up  the  avenues  to  compassion  ;  but  I  do  not  recollect 
a  single  instance  of  hard-heartedness  towards  me  in  the 
women.  In  all  my  wanderings  and  wretchedness,  I  found 
them  uniformly  kind  and  compassionate  ;  and  I  can  truly 
say,  as  Mr.  Ledyard  has  eloquently  said  before  me — '  To  a 

*  Or  suppose  a  colored  pedler  with  valuable  soods  travelling  in  slave 
states,  where  the  laws  afford  little  or  no  protection  to  negro  property, 
what  would  probably  be  his  fate  ? 


184        MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

woman,  I  never  addressed  myself  in  the  language  of  decency 
and  friendship,  without  receiving  a  decent  and  friendly  an- 
swer. If  I  was  hungry,  or  thirsty,  wet,  or  ill,  they  did  not 
hesitate,  like  the  men,  to  perform  a  generous  action.  In  so 
free  and  so  kind  a  manner,  did  they  contribute  to  my  relief, 
ihat  if  I  were  thirsty,  I  drank  the  sweeter  draught ;  and  if 
I  were  hungry,  I  ate  the  coarsest  meal  with  a  double  relish.' 

"  It  is  surely  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  soft  and  amia- 
ble sympathy  of  nature,  thus  spontaneously  manifested  to  me 
in  my  distress,  is  displayed  by  these  poor  people  as  occasion 
requires,  much  more  strongly  toward  those  of  their  own 
nation  and  neighborhood.  Maternal  affection,  neither  sup- 
pressed by  the  restraints,  nor  diverted  by  the  solicitudes  of 
civilized  life,  is  every  where  conspicuous  among  them,  and 
creates  reciprocal  tenderness  in  the  child.  '  Strike  me,'  said 
a  negro  to  his  master,  who  spoke  disrespectfully  of  his  pa- 
rent, *  but  do  not  curse  my  mother.'  The  same  sentiment  I 
found  to  prevail  universally." 

"  I  perceived,  with  great  satisfaction,  that  the  maternal 
solicitude  extended  not  only  to  the  growth  and  security  of  the 
person,  but  also,  in  a  certain  degree,  to  the  improvement  of 
the  character ;  for  one  of  the  first  lessons,  which  the  Man- 
dingo  women  teach  their  children,  is  the  practice  of  truth. 
A  poor  unhappy  mother,  whose  son  had  been  murdered  by 
a  Moorish  banditti,  found  consolation  in  her  deepest  distress 
from  the  reflection  that  her  boy,  in  the  whole  course  of  his 
blameless  life,  had  never  told  a  lie." 

Adanson,  who  visited  Senegal,  in  1754,  describes  the  ne- 
groes as  sociable,  obliging,  humane,  and  hospitable.  "  Their 
amiable  simplicity,"  says  he,  "  in  this  enchanting  country, 
recalled  to  me  the  idea  of  the  primitive  race  of  man ;  I 
thought  I  saw  the  world  in  its  infancy.  They  are  distin- 
guished by  tenderness  for  their  parents,  and  great  respect 
for  the  aged."  Robin  speaks  of  a  slave  at  Martinico,  who 
having  gained  money  sufficient  for  his  own  ransom,  preferred 
to  purchase  his  mother's  freedom. 

Proyart,  in  his  history  of  Loango,  acknowledges  that  the 
negroes  on  the  coast,  who  associate  with  Europeans,  are  in- 
clined to  licentiousness  and  fraud  ;  but  he  says  those  of  the 
interior  are  humane,  obliging,  and  hospitable.  Golberry  re- 
peats the  same  praise,  and  rebukes  the  presumption  of  white 
men  in  despising  "  nations  improperly  called  savage,  among 
whom  we  find  men  of  integrity,  models  of  filial,  conjugal,  and 


MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES.        185 

paternal  affection,  who  know  all  the  energies  and  refinements 
of  virtue ;  among  whom  sentimental  impressions  are  more 
deep,  because  they  observe,  more  than  we,  the  dictates  of 
nature,  and  know  how  to  sacrifice  personal  interest  to  the  ties 
of  friendship." 

Joseph  Rachel,  a  free  negro  of  Barbadoes,  having  become 
rich  by  commerce,  consecrated  all  his  fortune  to  acts  of  charity 
and  beneficence.  The  unfortunate  of  all  colors  shared  his 
kindness.  He  gave  to  the  needy,  lent  without  hope  of  return, 
visited  prisoners,  and  endeavored  to  reform  the  guilty.  He 
died  in  1758.  The  philanthropists  of  England  speak  of  him 
with  the  utmost  respect. 

Jasmin  Thoumazeau  was  born  in  Africa,  1714,  and  sold 
at  St.  Domingo,  1736.  Having  obtained  his  freedom,  he  re- 
turned to  his  native  country,  and  married  a  negro  girl  of  the 
Gold  Coast.  In  1756,  he  established  a  hospital  for  poor  ne- 
groes and  mulattoes.  During  more  than  forty  years,  he  and 
his  wife  devoted  their  time  and  fortune  to  the  comfort  of  such 
invalids  as  sought  their  protection.  The  Philadelphian  So- 
ciety, at  the  Cape,  and  the  Agricultural  Society  of  Paris, 
decreed  medals  to  this  worthy  and  benevolent  man. 

Louis  Desrouleaux  was  the  slave  of  M.  Pinsum,  a  captain 
in  the  negro  trade,  who  resided  at  St.  Domingo.  The  mas- 
ter having  amassed  great  riches,  went  to  reside  in  France, 
where  circumstances  combined  to  ruin  him.  Depressed  in 
fortune  and  spirits,  he  returned  to  St.  Domingo  ;  but  those 
who  had  formerly  been  proud  of  his  friendship,  now  avoided 
him.  Louis  heard  of  his  misfortunes  and  immediately  went 
to  see  him.  The  scales  were  now  turned ;  the  negro  was 
rich,  and  the  white  man  poor.  The  generous  fellow  offered 
every  assistance,  but  advised  M.  Pinsum  by  all  means  to  re- 
turn to  France,  where  he  would  not  be  pained  by  the  sight 
of  ungrateful  men.  "  But  I  cannot  gain  a  living  there," 
replied  the  white  man.  "  Will  the  annual  revenue  of  fifteen 
thousand  francs  be  sufficient  ?"  asked  Louis.  The  French- 
man's eyes  filled  with  tears.  The  negro  signed  the  contract, 
and  the  pension  was  regularly  paid,  till  the  death  of  Louis 
Desrouleaux,  in  1774.  . 

Benoit  of  Palermo,  also  named  Benoit  of  Santo  Fratello, 
sometimes  called  The  Holy  Black,  was  a  negro,  and  the  son 
of  a  female  slave.  Roccho  Pirro,  author  of  the  Sicilia  Sacra9 
eulogizes  him  thus :  "  Nigro  quidem  corpore  sed  candore 
animi  prseclarisimus  quern  miraculis  Deus  contestatum  esse 
16* 


ISO        MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

voluit."  "  His  body  was  black,  but  it  pleased  God  to  testify 
by  miracles  the  whiteness  of  his  soul."  He  died  at  Palermo, 
in  1589,  where  his  tomb  and  memory  are  much  revered.  A 
few  years  ago,  it  was  said  the  Pope  was  about  to  authorize 
his  canonization.  Whether  he  is  yet  registered  as  a  saint  in 
the  Calendar,  I  know  not ;  but  many  writers  agree  that  he 
was  a  saint  indeed — eminent  for  his  virtues,  which  he  prac- 
tised in  meekness  and  silence,  desiring  no  witness  but  his  God. 

The  moral  character  of  Toussaint  L'Ouverture  is  even 
more  worthy  of  admiration  than  his  intellectual  acuteness. 
What  can  be  more  beautiful  than  his  unchanging  gratitude 
to  his  benefactor,  his  warm  attachment  to  his  family,  his  high- 
minded  sacrifice  of  personal  feeling  to  the  public  good?  He 
was  a  hero  in  the  sublimest  sense  of  the  word.  Yet  he  had 
no  white  blood  in  his  veins — he  was  all  negro. 

The  following  description  of  a  slave-market  at  Brazil  is 
from  the  pen  of  Doctor  Walsh :  "  The  men  were  generally 
less  interesting  objects  than  the  women ;  their  countenances 
and  hues  were  very  varied,  according  to  the  part  of  the  Afri- 
can coast  from  which  they  came ;  some  were  soot-black, 
having  a  certain  ferocity  of  aspect  that  indicated  strong  and 
fierce  passions,  like  men  who  were  darkly  brooding  over 
some  deep-felt  wrongs,  and  meditating  revenge.  When  any 
one  was  ordered,  he  came  forward  with  a  sullen  indifference, 
threw  his  arms  over  his  head,  stamped  with  his  feet,  shouted 
to  show  the  soundness  of  his  lungs,  ran  up  and  down  the 
room,  and  was  treated  exactly  like  a  horse  put  through  his 
paces  at  a  repository ;  and  when  done,  he  was  whipped  to 
his  stall. 

"  Many  of  them  were  lying  stretched  on  the  bare  boards  ; 
and  among  the  rest,  mothers  with  young  children  at  their 
breasts,  of  which  they  seemed  passionately  fond.  They  were 
all  doomed  to  remain  on  the  spot,  like  sheep  in  a  pen,  till  they 
were  sold ;  they  have  no  apartment  to  retire  to,  no  bed  to 
repose  on,  no  covering  to  protect  them ;  they  sit  naked  all 
day,  and  lie  naked  all  night,  on  the  bare  boards,  or  benches, 
where  we  saw  them  exhibited. 

"  Among  the  objects  that  attracted  my  attention  in  this 
place  were  some  young  boys,  who  seemed  to  have  formed  a 
society  together.  I  observed  several  times  in  passing  by, 
that  the  same  little  group  was  collected  near  a  barred  win- 
dow ;  the}'  seemed  very  fond  of  each  other,  and  their  kindly 
feelings  were  never  interrupted  by  peevishness;  indeed,  the 


MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES.        187 

temperament  of  a  negro  child  is  generally  so  sound,  that  ho 
is  not  affected  by  those  little  morbid  sensations,  which  are 
the  frequent  cause  of  crossness  and  ill-temper  in  our  children. 
I  do  not  remember  that  I  ever  saw  a  young  black  fretful, 
or  out  of  humor ;  certainly  never  displaying  those  ferocious 
fits  of  petty  passion,  in  which  the  superior  nature  of  infant 
whites  indulges.  I  sometimes  brought  cakes  and  fruit  in  my 
pocket,  and  handed  them  in  to  the  group.  It  was  quite  de- 
lightful to  observe  the  generous  and  disinterested  manner  in 
which  they  distributed  them.  There  was  no  scrambling  with 
one  another ;  no  selfish  reservation  to  themselves.  The  child 
to  whom  I  happened  to  give  them,  took  them  so  gently,  looked 
so  thankfully,  and  distributed  them  so  generously,  that  I  could 
not  help  thinking  that  God  had  compensated  their  dusky  hue, 
by  a  more  than  usual  human  portion  of  amiable  qualities." 

Several,  negroes  in  Jamaica  were  to  be  hung.  One  of 
them  was  offered  his  life,  i-f  he  would  hang  the  others  ;  he 
preferred  death.  A  negro  slave  who  was  ordered  to  do  it, 
asked  time  to  prepare ;  he  went  into  his  cabin,  chopped  off 
his  right  hand  with  an  axe,  and  then  came  back,  saying  he 
was  ready. 

Sutcliffin  his  Travels,  speaks  of  meeting  a  coffle  of  slaves 
in  Maryland,  one  of  whom  had  voluntarily  gone  into  slavery, 
in  hopes  of  meeting  her  husband,  who  was  a  free  black  and 
had  been  stolen  by  kidnappers.  The  poor  creature  was  in 
treacherous  hands,  and  it  is  a  great  chance  whether  she  ever 
saw  her  husband  again. 

An  affecting  instance  of  negro  friendship  may  be  found  in 
1  Bay's  Report,  260-3.  A  female  slave  in  South  Carolina 
was  allowed  to  work  out  in  the  town,  on  condition  that  she 
paid  her  master  a  certain  sum  of  money,  per  month.  Being 
strong  and  industrious,  her  wages  amounted  to  more  than 
had  been  demanded  in  their  agreement.  After  a  time  she 
earned  enough  to  buy  her  freedom ;  but  she  preferred  to 
devote  the  sum  to  the  emancipation  of  a  negro  girl,  named 
Sally,  for  whom  she  had  conceived  a  strong  affection.  For 
a  long  time  the  master  pretended  to  have  no  property  in  his 
slave's  manumitted  friend,  never  paid  taxes  for  her,  and  often 
spoke  of  her  as  a  free  negro.  But,  from  some  motive  or  other, 
he  afterward  claimed  Sally  as  his  slave,  on  the  ground  that  no 
slave  could  make  any  purchase~on  his  own  account,  or  possess 
any  thing  which  did  not  legally  belong  to  his  master.  It  is 
an  honor  to  Chief  Justice  Rutledge  that  his  charge  was  given 


188         MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

in  a  spirit  better  than  the  laws.  He  concluded  by  saying, 
"  If  the  wench  choose  to  appropriate  the  savings  of  her  extra 
labor  to  the  purchase  of  this  girl,  in  order  to  set  her  free, 
will  a  jury  of  the  country  say,  No?  I  trust  not.  I  hope 
they  are  too  upright  and  humane,  to  do  such  manifest  vio- 
Jence  to  such  an  extraordinary  act  of  benevolence."  By 
the  prompt  decision  of  the  jury,  Sally  was  declared  free.* 

In  speaking  of  the  character  of  negroes,  it  ought  not  to  be 
omitted  that  many  of  them  were  brave  and  faithful  soldiers 
during  our  Revolution.  Some  are  now  receiving  pensions 
for  their  services.  At  New-Orleans,  likewise,  the  conduct 
of  the  colored  troops  was  deserving  of  the  highest  praise. 

It  is  common  to  speak  of  the  negroes  as  a  very  unfeeling 
race ;  and  no  doubt  the  charge  has  considerable  truth  when 
applied  to  those  in  a  state  of  bondage ;  for  slavery  blunts 
the  feelings,  as  well  as  stupifies  the  intellect.  The  poor- 
negro  is  considered  as  having  no  right  in  his  wife  and  chil- 
dren. They  may  be  suddenly  torn  from  him  to  be  sold  in  a 
distant  market ;  but  he  cannot  prevent  the  wrong.  He  may 
see  them  exposed  to  every  species  of  insult  and  indignity ; 
but  the  law,  which  stretches  forth  her  broad  shield  to  guard 
the  white  man's  rights,  excludes  the  negro  from  her  protec- 
tion. They  may  be  tied  to  the  whipping-post  and  die  under 
moderate  punishment ;  but  he  dares  not  complain.  If  he 
murmur,  there  is  the  tormenting  lash  ;  if  he  resist,  it  is  death. 
And  the  injustice  extends  even  beyond  the  grave ;  for  the 
story  of  the  slave  is  told  by  his  oppressor,  and  the  manly 
spirit  which  the  poor  creature  shows,  when  stung  to  the 
very  heart's  core,  is  represented  as  diabolical  revenge.  A 
short  time  ago,  I  read  in  a  Georgia  paper,  what  was  called 
a  horrid  transaction,  on  the  part  of  the  negro,  A  slave 
stood  by  and  saw  his  wife  whipped,  as  long  as  he  could  pos- 
sibly endure  the  sight ;  he  then  called  out  to  the  overseer, 
who  was  applying  the  lash,  that  he  would  kill  him  if  he  did 
not  use  more  mercy.  This  probably  made  matters  worse  ; 
at  all  events  the  lashing  continued.  The  husband  goaded 
to  frenzy,  rushed  upon  the  overseer,  and  stabbed  him  three 
times.  White  men  !  what  would  you  do,  if  the  laws  admitted 
that  your  wives  might  "  die"  of  "  moderate  punishment"  ad- 

*  Stroud  says  of  the  above,  "  This  is  an  isolated  case,  of  pretty  early 
date ;  it  deserves  to  be  noticed  because  it  is  in  opposition  to  the  spirit  of  the 
laws,  and  to  later  decisions  of  the  courts." 


MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES.          189 

ministered  by  your  employers  ?  The  overseer  died,  and  his 
murderer  was  either  burned  or  shot, — I  forget  which.  The 
Georgia  editor  viewed  the  subject  only  on  one  side — viz., 
the  monstrous  outrage  against  the  white  man — the  negro's 
wrongs  passed  for  nothing  !  It  was  very  gravely  added  to 
the  account  (probably  to  increase  the  odiousness  of  the  slave's 
offence,)  that  the  overseer  belonged  to  the  Presbyterian 
church  !  I  smiled, — because  it  made  me  think  of  a  man, 
whom  I  once  heard  described  as  "  a  most  excellent  Christian, 
that  would  steal  timber  to  build  a  church." 

This  instance  shows  that  even  slaves  are  not  quite  desti- 
tute of  feeling — yet  we  could  not  wonder  at  it,  if  they  were. 
Who  could  expect  the  kindly  affections  to  expand  in  such  an 
atmosphere !  Where  there  is  no  hope,  the  heart  becomes 
paralyzed  :  it  is  a  merciful  arrangement  of  Divine  Provi- 
dence, by  which  the  acuteness  of  sensibility  is  lessened  when 
it  becomes  merely  a  source  of  suffering. 

But  there  are  exceptions  to  this  general  rule ;  instances 
of  very  strong  and  deep  affection  are  sometimes  found  in  a 
state  of  hopeless  bondage.  Godwin,  in  his  eloquent  Lec- 
tures on  Colonial  Slavery,  quotes  the  following  anecdote,  as 
related  by  Mr.  T.  Pennock,  at  a  public  meeting  in  England  : 

"  A  few  years  ago  it  was  enacted,  that  it  should  not  be 
legal  to  transport  once  established  slaves  from  one  island  to 
another ;  and  a  gentleman  owner,  finding  it  advisable  to  da 
so  before  the  act  came  in  force,  the  removal  of  a  great  part 
of  his  live  stock  was  the  consequence.  He  had  a  female 
slave,  a  Methodist,  and  highly  valuable  to  him,  (not  the  less 
so  for  being  the  mother  of  eight  or  nine  children,)  whose 
husband,  also  of  our  connection,  was  the  property  of  another 
resident  on  the  islandr  where  I  happened  to  be  at  the  time. 
Their  masters  not  agreeing  on  a  sale,  separation  ensued,  and 
I  went  to  the  beach  to  be  an  eye-witness  of  their  behavior 
in  the  greatest  pang  of  all.  One  by  one,  the  man  kissed  his 
children,  with  the  firmness  of  a  hero,  and  blessing  them, 
gave  as  his  last  words — (oh !  will  it  be  believed,  and  have 
nO  influence  upon  our  veneration  for  the  negro?)  '  Farewell ! 
Be  honest,  and  obedient  to  your  master  /'  At  length  he  had 
to  take  leave  of  his  wife :  there  he  stood,  (I  have  him  in  my 
mind's  eye  at  this  moment,)  five  or  six  yards  from  the  mother 
of  his  children,  unable  to  move,  speak,  or  do  any  thing  but 
gaze,  and  still  to  gaze,  on  the  object  of  his  long  affection, 
soon  to  cross  the  blue  waves  for  ever  from  his  aching  sight. 


190        MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

The  fire  of  his  eyes  alone  gave  indication  of  the  passion  with- 
in,  until  after  some  minutes  standing  thus,  he  fell  senseless 
on  the  sand,  as  if  suddenly  struck  down  by  the  hand  of  the 
Almighty.  Nature  could  do  no  more";  the  blood  gushed 
from  his  nostrils  and  mouth,  as  if  rushing  from  the  terrors 
of  the  conflict  within  ;  and  amid  the  confusion  occasioned  by 
the  circumstance,  the  vessel  bore  off  his  family  for  ever  from 
the  island  !  After  some  days  he  recovered,  and  came  to 
ask  advice  of  me.  What  could  an  Englishman  do  in  such 
a  case  ?  I  felt  the  blood  boiling  within  me ;  but  I  conquered. 
I  browbeat  my  own  manhood,  and  gave  him  the  humblest 
advice  I  could." 

The  following  account  is  given  by  Mr.  Gilgrass,  one  of 
the  Methodist  missionaries  at  Jamaica. :  "  A  master  of  slaves, 
who  lived  near  us  in  Kingston,  exercised  his  barbarities  on 
a  Sabbath  morning  while  we  were  worshiping  God  in  the 
Chapel ;  and  the  cries  of  the  female  sufferers  have  frequently 
interrupted  us  in  our  devotions.  But  there  was  no  redress 
for  them,  or  for  us.  This  man  wanted  money  ;  and  one  of 
the  female  slaves  having  two  fine  children,  he  sold  one  of 
them,  and  the  child  was  torn  from  her  maternal  affection. 
In  the  agony  of  her  feelings,  she  made  a  hideous  howling ; 
and  for  that  crime  she  was  flogged.  Soon  after  he  sold  her 
other  child.  This  *  turned  her  heart  within  her,'  and  im- 
pelled her  into  a  kind  of  madness.  She  howled  night  and 
day  in  the  yard ;  tore  her  hair ;  ran  up  and  down  the  streets 
and  the  parade,  rending  the  heavens  with  her  cries,  and  lit- 
erally watering  the  earth  with  her  tears.  Her  constant  cry 
was,  '  Da  wicked  massa,  he  sell  me  children.  Will  no  buckra 
master  pity  nega  ?  What  me  do  !  Me  have  no  child  /'  As 
she  stood  before  my  window,  she  said,  lifting  her  hands 
towards  heaven, '  Do,  me  master  minister,  pity  me  !  Me  heart 
do  so,  (shaking  herself  violently,)  me  heart  do  so,  because  me 
have  no  child.  Me  go  a  massa  house,  in  massa  yard,  and  in 
me  hut,  and  me  no  see  em ;'  and  then  her  cry  went  up  to 
God.  I  durst  not  be  seen  looking  at  her." 

A  similar  instance  of  strong  affection  happened  in  the  city 
of  Washington,  December,  1815.  A  negro  woman,  with 
her  two  children,  was  sold  near  Bladensburg,  to  Georgia 
traders  ;  but  the  master  refused  to  sell  her  husband.  When 
the  coffle  reached  Washington,  on  their  way  to  Georgia, 
the  poor  creature  attempted  to  escape,  by  jumping  from  the 
garret  window  of  a  three-story  brick  tavern.  Her  arms 


MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES.        191 

and  back  were  dreadfully  broken.  When  asked  why  she 
had  done  such  a  desperate  act,  she  replied,  "  They  brought 
me  away,  and  wouldn't  let  me  see  my  husband ;  and  I  didn't 
want  to  go.  I  was  so  distracted  that  I  didn't  know  what  1 
was  about :  but  I  didn't  want  to  go — and  I  jumped  out  of 
the  window."  The  unfortunate  woman  was  given  to  the 
landlord  as  a  compensation  for  having  her  taken  care  of  at 
his  house  ;  her  children  were  sold  in  Carolina  ;  and  thus  was 
this  poor  forlorn  being  left  alone  in  her  misery.  In  all  this 
wide  land  of  benevolence  and  freedom,  there  was  no  one 
who  could  protect  her :  for  in  such  cases,  the  laws  come  in, 
with  iron  grasp,  to  check  the  stirrings  of  human  sympathy. 

Another  complaint  is  that  slaves  have  most  inveterate 
habits  of  laziness.  No  doubt  this  is  true — it  would  be  strange 
indeed  if  it  were  otherwise.  Where  is  the  human  being,  who 
will  work  from  a  disinterested  love  of  toil,  when  his  labor 
brings  no  improvement  to  himself,  no  increase  of  comfort  to 
his  wife  and  children  ? 

Pelletan,  in  his  Memoirs  of  the  French  Colony  of  Senegal, 
says,  "  The  negroes  work  with  ardor,  because  they  are  now 
unmolested  in  their  possessions  and  enjoyments.  Since  the 
suppression  of  slavery,  the  Moors  make  no  more  inroads 
upon  them,  and  their  villages  are  rebuilt  and  re-peooled." 
Bosnian,  who  was  by  no  means  very  friendly  to  colored 
people,  says  :  "  The  negroes  of  Cabomonte  and  Juido,  are 
indefatigable  cultivators,  economical  of  their  soil,  they  scarcely 
leave  a  foot-path  to  form  a  communication  between  the  dif- 
ferent possessions  ;  they  reap  one  day,  and  the  next  they  sow 
the  same  earth,  without  allowing  it  time  for  repose." 

It  is  needless  to  multiply  quotations ;  for  the  concurrent 
testimony  of  all  travellers  proves  that  industry  is  a  common 
virtue  in  the  interior  of  Africa. 

Again,  it  is  said  that  the  negroes  are  treacherous,  cunning, 
dishonest,  and  profligate.  Let  me  ask  you,  candid  reader, 
what  you  would  be,  if  you  labored  under  the  same  unnatural 
circumstances?  The  daily  earnings  of  the  slave,  nay,  his 
very  wife  and  children,  are  constantly  wrested  from  him, 
under  the  sanction  of  the  laws ;  is  this  the  way  to  teach  a 
scrupulous  regard  to  the  property  of  others  ?  How  can 
purity  be  expected  from  him,  who  sees  almost  universal  licen- 
tiousness prevail  among  those  whom  he  is  taught  to  regard  as 
his  superiors  ?  Besides,  we  must  remember  how  entirely  un- 
protected the  negro  is  in  his  domestic  relations,  and  how  very 


192        MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

frequently  husband  and  wife  are  separated  by  the  caprice, 
or  avarice,  of  the  white  man.  I  have  no  doubt  that  slaves 
are  artful ;  for  they  must  be  so.  Cunning  is  always  the  re- 
Bort  of  the  weak  against  the  strong  ;  children,  who  have 
violent  and  unreasonable  parents,  become  deceitful  in  self- 
defence.  The  only  way  to  make  young  people  sincere  and 
frank,  is  to  treat  them  with  mildness  and  perfect  justice. 

The  negro  often  pretends  to  be  ill  in  order  to  avoid  labor ; 
and  if  you  were  situated  as  he  is,  you  would  do  the  same. 
But  it  is  said  that  the  blacks  are  malignant  and  revengeful. 
Granting  it  to  be  true, — is  it  their  fault,  or-  is  it  owing  to 
the  cruel  circumstances  in  which  they  are  placed  ?  Surely 
there  are  proofs  enough  that  they  are  naturally  a  kind  and 
gentle  people.  True,  they  do  sometimes  murder  their  mas- 
ters  and  overseers ;  but  where  there  is  utter  hopelessness, 
can  we  wonder  at  occasional  desperation  ?  I  do  not  believe 
that  any  class  of  people  subject  to  the  same  influences,  would 
commit  fewer  crimes.  Dickson,  in  his  letters  on  slavery, 
informs  us  that  among  one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand 
negroes  and  Creoles  of  Barbadoes,  only  three  murders  have 
been  known  to  be  committed  by  them  in  the  course  of 
thirty  years ;  although  often  provoked  by  the  cruelty  of  the 
planters." 

In  estimating  the  vices  of  slaves,  there  are  several  items 
to  be  taken  into  the  account.  In  the  first  place,  we  hear  a 
great  deal  of  the  negroes'  crimes,  while  we  hear  very  little 
of  their  provocations.  If  they  murder  their  masters,  news- 
papers and  almanacs  blazon  it  all  over  the  country ;  but  if 
their  masters  murder  them,  a  trifling  fine  is  paid,  and  nobody 
thinks  of  mentioning  the  matter.  I  believe  there  are  twenty 
negroes  killed  by  white  men,  where  there  is  one  white  man 
killed  by  a  black.  If  you  believe  this  to  be  mere  conjecture, 
I  pray  you  examine  the  Judicial  Reports  of  the  Southern 
States.  The  voice  of  humanity,  concerning  this  subject,  is 
weak  and  stifled  ;  and  when  a  master  kills  his  own  slave  we 
are  not  likely  to  hear  the  tidings — but  the  voice  of  avarice 
is  loud  and  strong  ;  and  it  sometimes  happens  that  negroes 
"die  under  a  moderate  punishment"  administered  by  other 
hands  :  then  prosecutions  ensue,  in  order  to  recover  the  price 
of  the  slave ;  and  in  this  way  we  are  enabled  to  form  a  tole- 
rable conjecture  concerning  the  frequency  of  such  crimes. 

I  have  said  that  we  seldom  hear  of  the  grievous  wrongs 
which  provoke  the  vengeance  of  the  slave;  I  will  tell  an 


MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES.        193 

anecdote,  which  I  know  to  be  true,  as  a  proof  in  point. 
Within  the  last  two  years,  a  gentleman  residing  in  Boston, 
was  summoned  to  the  West  Indies  in  consequence  of  troubles 
on  his  plantation.  His  overseer  had  been  killed  by  the  slaves. 
This  fact  was  soon  made  public ;  and  more  than  one  ex- 
claimed,  "  what  diabolical  passions  these  negroes  have  !" 
To  which  I  replied,  that  I  only  wondered  they  were  half  as 
good  as  they  were.  It  was  not  long,  however,  before  I  dis- 
covered the  particulars  of  the  case  :  and  I  took  some  pains 
that  the  public  should  likewise  be  informed  of  them.  The 
overseer  was  a  bad,  licentious  man.  How  long  and  how 
much  the  slaves  endured  under  his  power  I  know  not,  but  at 
last,  he  took  a  fancy  to  two  of  the  negroes'  wives,  ordered 
them  to  be  brought  to  his  house,  and  in  spite  of  their  entrea- 
ties and  resistance,  compelled  them  to  remain  as  long  as  he 
thought  proper.  The  husbands  found  their  little  huts  deserted, 
and  knew  very  well  where  the  blame  rested.  In  such  a  case, 
you  would  have  gone  to  law ;  but  the  law  does  not  recog- 
nise a  negro's  rights — he  is  the  property  of  his  master,  and 
subject  to  the  will  of  his  agent.  If  a  slave  should  talk  of 
being  protected  in  his  domestic  relations,  it  would  cause 
great  merriment  in  a  slaveholding  State ;  the  proposition 
would  be  deemed  equally  inconvenient  and  absurd.  Under 
such  circumstances,  the  negro  husbands  took  justice  into  their 
own  hands.  They  murdered  the  overseer.  Four  innocent 
slaves  were  taken  up,  and  upon  very  slight  circumstantial  evi- 
dence were  condemned  to  be  shot ;  but  the  real  actors  in  this 
scene  passed  unsuspected.  When  the  unhappy  men  found 
their  companions  were  condemned  to  die,  they  avowed  the  fact, 
and  exculpated  all  others  from  any  share  in  the  deed.  Was 
not  this  true  magnanimity?  Can  you  help  respecting  those 
negroes  ?  If  you  can,  I  pity  you. 

Since  the  condition  of  slaves  is  such  as  I  have  described, 
are  you  surprised  at  occasional  insurrections?  You  may 
regret  it  most  deeply  ;  but  can  you  wonder  at  it.  The  fa- 
mous Captain  Smith,  when  he  was  a  slave  in  Tartary,  killed 
his  overseer  and  made  his  escape.  I  never  heard  him  blamed 
for  it — it  seems  to  be  universally  considered  a  simple  act  of 
self-defence.  The  same  thing  has  often  occurred  with  regard 
to  white  men  taken  by  the  Algerines. 

The  Poles  have  shed  Russian  "  blood  enough  to  float  our 
navy;"  and  we  admire  and  praise  them,  because  they  did  it 
in  resistance  of  oppression.  Yet  they  have  suffered  less  than 

17 


194         MORAL  CHARACTER  OF  NEGROES. 

black  slaves,  all  the  world  over,  are  suffering.  We  honor 
our  forefathers  because  they  rebelled  against  certain  princi- 
ples dangerous  to  political  freedom  ;  yet  from  actual,  per- 
sonal tyranny,  they  suffered  nothing :  the  negro  on  the  con- 
trary, is  suffering  all  that  oppression  can  make  human  nature 
suffer.  Why  do  we  execrate  in  one  set  of  men,  what  we 
laud  so  highly  in  another  ?  I  shall  be  reminded  that  insur- 
rections and  murders  are  totally  at  variance  with  the  pre- 
cepts of  our  religion;  and  this  is  most  true.  But  according 
to  this  rule,  the  Americans,  Poles,  Parisians,  Belgians,  and 
all  who  have  shed  blood  for  the  sake  of  liberty,  are  more  to 
blame  than  the  negroes  ;  for  the  former  are  more  enlightened, 
and  can  always  have  access  to  the  fountain  of  religion ; 
while  the  latter  are  kept  in  a  state  of  brutal  ignorance — not 
allowed  to  read  their  Bibles — knowing  nothing  of  Chris- 
tianity, except  the  examples  of  their  masters,  who  profess  to 
be  governed  by  its  maxims. 

I  hope  I  shall  not  be  misunderstood  on  this  point.  I  am 
not  vindicating  insurrections  and  murders  ;  the  very  thought 
makes  my  blood  run  cold.  I  believe  revenge  is  always 
wicked  ;  but  I  say,  what  the  laws  of  every  country  acknow* 
ledge,  that  great  provocations  are  a  palliation  of  great  crimes. 
When  a  man  steals  food  because  he  is  starving,  we  are  more 
disposed  to  pity,  than  to  blame  him.  And  what  can  human 
nature  do,  subject  to  continual  and  oppressive  wrong — hope- 
less of  change — not  only  unprotected  by  law,  but  the  law 
itself  changed  into  aa  enemy — and  to  complete  the  whole, 
shutout  from  the  instructions  and  consolations  of  the  Gospel ! 
No  wonder  the  West  India  missionaries  found  it  very  diffi- 
cult to  decide  what  they  ought  to  say  to  the  poor,  suffering 
negroes  !  They  could  indeed  tell  them  it  was  very  impolitic 
to  b'e  rash  and  violent,  because  it  could  not,  under  existing 
circumstances,  make  their  situation  better,  and  would  be  very 
likely  to  make  it  worse ;  but  if  they  urged  the  maxims  of 
religion,  the  slaves  might  ask  the  embarrassing  question,  is 
not  our  treatment  in  direct  opposition  to  the  precepts  of  the 
gospel  ?  Our  masters  can  read  the  Bible — they  have  a  chance 
to  know  better.  Why  do  not  Christians  deal  justly  by  us, 
before  they  require  us  to  deal  mercifully  with  them  ? 

Think  of  all  these  things,  kind-hearted  reader.  Try  to 
judge  the  negro  by  the  sarno  rules  you  judge  other  men ;  and 
while  you  condemn  his  faults,  do  not  forget  his  manifold  prov- 
ocations. 


PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR.    195 


CHAPTER    VIII. 


PREJUDICES    AGAINST   PEOPLE    OF    COLOR,    AND    OUR    DUTIES    TN 
RELATION   TO   THIS   SUBJECT. 

"  A  negro  has  a  soul,  an'  please  your  honor,  said  the  Corporal,  (doubtingly.) 

"  I  am  not  much  versed,  Corporal,"  quoth  my  Uncle  Toby,  "  In  things  of  that 
kind ;  but  I  suppose  God  would  not  leave  him  without  one  any  more  than  thee 
or  me." 

"  It  would  be  putting  one  sadly  over  the  head  of  the  other,"  quoth  the  Corporal. 

"  It  would  so,"  said  my  Uncle  Toby. 

"  Why  then,  an'  please  your  honor,  is  a  black  man  to  be  used  worse  than  a  white 
one." 

"  I  can  give  no  reason,"  said  my  Uncle  Toby. 

"  Only,"  cr  " 

up  for  him." 

"  It  is  that  very  tiling,  Trim,"  quoth  my  Uncle  Toby,  "  which  recommends  him  to 
protection." 

WHILE  we  bestow  our  earnest  disapprobation  on  the  sys- 
tem of  slavery,  let  us  not  flatter  ourselves  that  we  are  in 
reality  any  better  than  our  brethren  of  the  South.  Thanks 
to  our  soil  and  climate,  and  the  early  exertions  of  the  excel- 
lent  Society  of  Friends,  the/bm  of  slavery  does  not  exist 
among  us  ;  but  the  very  spirit  of  the  hateful  and  mischievous 
thing  is  here  in  all  its  strength.  The  manner  in  which  we 
use  what  power  we  have,  gives  us  ample  reason  to  be  grate- 
ful that  the  nature  of  our  institutions  does  not  intrust  us  with 
more.  Our  prejudice  against  colored  people  is  even  more 
inveterate  than  it  is  at  the  South.  The  planter  is  often  at- 
tached to  his  negroes,  and  lavishes  caresses  and  kind  words 
upon  them,  as  he  would  on  a  favorite  hound  :  but  our  cold- 
hearted,  ignoble  prejudice  admits  of  no  exception — no  inter- 
mission. 

The  Southerners  have  long  continued  habit,  apparent  inte- 
rest and  dreaded  danger,  to  palliate  the  wrong  they  do  ;  but 
we  stand  without  excuse.  They  tell  us  that  Northern  ships 
and  Northern  capital  have  been  engaged  in  this  wicked  busi- 
ness; and  the  reproach  is  true.  Several  fortunes  in  this  city 
have  been  made  by  the  sale  of  negro  blood.  If  these  criminal 
transactions  are  still  carried  on,  they  are  clone  in  silence  and 
secrecy,  because  public  opinion  has  made  them  disgraceful. 
Bui  if  the  free  States  wished  to  cherish  the  system  of  slavery 


196    PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR. 

for  ever,  they  could  not  take  a  more  direct  course  than  they 
now  do.  Those  who  are  kind  and  liberal  on  all  other  sub- 
jects, unite  with  the  selfish  and  the  proud  in  their  unrelent- 
ing  efforts  to  keep  the  colored  population  in  the  lowest  state 
of  degradation  ;  and  the  influence  they  unconsciously  exert 
over  children  early  infuses  into  their  innocent  minds  the  same 
strong  feelings  of  contempt. 

The  intelligent  and  well-informed  have  the  least  share  of 
this  prejudice  ;  and  when  their  minds  can  be  brought  to 
reflect  upon  it,  I  have  generally  observed  that  they  soon 
cease  to  have  any  at  all.  But  such  a  general  apathy  pre- 
vails and  the  subject  is  so  seldom  brought  into  view,  that  few 
are  really  aware  how  oppressively  the  influence  of  society 
is  made  to  bear  upon  this  injured  class  of  the  community. 
When  I  have  related  facts,  that  came  under  my  own  obser- 
vation, I  have  often  been  listened  to  with  surprise,  which 
gradually  increased  to  indignation.  In  order  that  my  read- 
ers may  not  be  ignorant  of  the  extent  of  this  tyrannical  pre- 
judice, I  will  as  briefly  as  possible  state  the  evidence,  and 
leave  them  to  judge  of  it,  as  their  hearts  and  consciences  may 
dictate. 

In  the  first  place,  an  unjust  law  exists  in  this  Common- 
wealth, by  which  marriages  between  persons  of  different  color 
is  pronounced  illegal.  I  am  perfectly  aware  of  the  gross 
ridicule  to  which  I  may  subject  myself  by  alluding  to  this 
particular  ;  but  I  have  lived  too  long,  and  observed  too  much, 
to  be  disturbed  by  the  world's  mockery.  In  the  first  place, 
the  government  ought  not  to  be  invested  with  power  to  con- 
trol  the  affections,  any  more  than  the  consciences  of  citizens. 
A  man  has  at  least  as  good  a  right  to  choose  his  wife,  as  he 
has  to  choose  his  religion.  His  taste  may  not  suit  his  neigh- 
bors ;  but  so  long  as  his  deportment  is  correct,  they  have  no 
right  to  interfere  with  his  concerns.  In  the  second  place,  this 
law  is  a  useless  disgrace  to  Massachusetts.  Under  existing 
circumstances,  none  but  those  whose  condition  in  life  is  too 
low  to  be  much  affected  by  public  opinion,  will  form  such 
alliances  ;  and  they,  when  they  choose  to  do  so,  will  make 
such  marriages,  in  spite  of  the  law.  I  know  two  or  three 
instances  where  women  of  the  laboring  class  have  been 
united  to  reputable,  industrious  colored  men.  These  husbands 
regularly  bring  home  their  wages,  and  are  kind  to  their  fami- 
lies. If  by  some  of  the  odd  chances,  which  not  unfrequenlly 
occur  in  the  world,  their  wives  should  become  heirs  to  any 


OUR    DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT.        197 

property,  the  children  may  be  wronged  out  of  it,  because  the 
law  pronounces  them  illegitimate.  And  while  this  injustice 
exists  with  regard  to  honest,  industrious  individuals,  who  are 
merely  guilty  of  differing  from  us  in  a  matter  of  taste,  neither 
the  legislation  nor  customs  of  slaveholding  States  exert  their 
influence  against  immoral  connexions. 

In  one  portion  of  our  country  this  fact  is  shown  in  a  very 
peculiar  and  striking  manner.  There  is  a  numerous  class 
at  New-Orleans,  called  Quateroons,  or  Quadroons,  because 
their  colored  blood  has  for  several  successive  generations 
been  intermingled  with  the  white.  The  women  are  much 
distinguished  for  personal  beauty  and  gracefulness  of  motion ; 
and  their  parents  frequently  send  them  to  France  for  the  ad- 
vantages of  an  elegant  education.  White  gentlemen  of  the 
first  rank  are  desirous  of  being  invited  to  their  parties,  and 
often  become  seriously  in  love  with  these  fascinating  but 
unfortunate  beings.  Prejudice  forbids  matrimony,  but  uni- 
versal custom  sanctions  temporary  connexions,  to  which  a 
certain  degree  of  respectability  is  allowed,  on  account  of  the 
peculiar  situation  of  the  parties.  These  attachments  often 
continue  for  years — sometimes  for  life — and  instances  are 
not  unfrequent  of  exemplary  constancy  and  great  propriety 
of  deportment. 

What  eloquent  vituperations  we  should  pour  forth,  if  the 
contending  claims  of  nature  and  pride  produced  such  a  tissue 
of  contradictions  in  some  other  country,  and  not  in  our  own ! 

There  is  another  Massachusetts  law,  which  an  enlightened 
community  would  not  probably  suffer  to  be  carried  into  exe- 
cution under  any  circumstances ;  but  it  still  remains  to  dis- 
grace the  statutes  of  this  Commonwealth.  It  is  as  follows : 

"  No  African  or  Negro,  other  than  a  subject  of  the  Ern- 
peror  of  Morocco,  or  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  (proved 
so  by  a  certificate  of  the  Secretary  of  the  State  of  which  he 
is  a  citizen,)  shall  tarry  within  this  Commonwealth  longer 
than  two  months ;  and  on  complaint  a  justice  shall  order 
him  to  depart  in  ten  days  ;  and  if  he  do  not  then,  the  justice 
may  commit  such  African  or  Negro  to  the  House  of  Cor- 
rection, there  to  be  kept  at  hard  labor  ;  and  at  the  next  term 
of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  he  shall  be  tried,  and  if  con- 
victed of  remaining  as  aforesaid,  shall  be  whipped  not  exceed- 
ing ten  lashes  ;  and  if  he  or  she  shall  not  then  depart,  such 
process  shall  be  repeated,  and  punishment  inflicted,  toties 
quoties."  Stat.  1788,  Ch.  54. 

17* 


198     PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR. 

An  honorable  Haytian  or  Brazilian,  who  visited  this  coun- 
try for  business  or  information,  might  come  under  this  law, 
unless  public  opinion  rendered  it  a  mere  dead  letter. 

There  is  among  the  colored  people  an  increasing  desire 
for  information,  and  laudable  ambition  to  be  respectable  in 
manners  and  appearance.  Are  we  not  foolish  as  well  as 
sinful,  in  trying  to  repress  a  tendency  so  salutary  to  them- 
selves, and  so  beneficial  to  the  community  ?  Several  individ- 
uals of  this  class  are  very  desirous  to  have  persons  of  their 
own  color  qualified  to  teach  something  more  than  mere 
reading  and  writing.  But  in  the  public  schools,  colored  chil- 
dren are  subject  to  many  discouragements  and  difficulties ;  and 
into  the  private  schools  they  cannot  gain  admission.  A  very 
sensible  and  well-informed  colored  woman  in  a  neighboring 
town,  whose  family  have  been  brought  up  in  a  manner  that 
excited  universal  remark  and  approbation,  has  been  extremely 
desirous  to  obtain  for  her  eldest  daughter  the  advantages  of 
a  private  school ;  but  she  has  been  resolutely  repulsed  on 
account  of  her  complexion.  The  girl  is  a  very  light  mu- 
latto, with  great  modesty  and  propriety  of  manners  ;  perhaps 
no  young  person  in  the  Commonwealth  was  less  likely  to 
have  a  bad  influence  on  -her  associates.  The  clergyman 
respected  the  family,  and  he  remonstrated  with  the  instructor ; 
but  while  the  latter  admitted  the  injustice  of  the  thing,  he 
excused  himself  by  saying  such  a  step  would  occasion  the 
loss  of  all  his  White  scholars. 

In  a  town  adjoining  Boston,  a  well  behaved  colored  boy 
was  kept  out  of  the  public  school  more  than  a  year,  by  vote 
of  the  trustees.  His  mother,  having  some  information  her- 
self, knew  the  importance  of  knowledge,  and  was  anxious  to 
obtai»  it  for  her  family.  She  wrote  repeatedly  and  urgently ; 
and  the  schoolmaster  himself  told  me  that  the  correctness 
of  her  spelling,  and  the  neatness  of  her  hand-writing,  formed 
a  curious  contrast  with  the  notes  he  received  from  many 
white  parents.  At  last,  this  spirited  woman  appeared  before 
the  committee,  and  reminded  them  that  her  husband,  having 
for  many  years  paid  taxes  as  a  citizen,  had  a  right  to  the 
privileges  of  a  citizen  ;  and  if  her  claim  were  refused,  or 
longer  postponed,  she  declared  her  determination  to  seek 
justice  from  a  higher  source.  The  trustees  were,  of  course, 
obliged  to  yield  to  the  equality  of  the  laws,  with  the  best 
grace  they  could.  The  boy  was  admitted,  and  made  good 
progress  in  bis  studies.  Had  his  mother  been  too  ignorant 


OUR    DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT.       199 

to  know  her  rights,  or  too  abject  to  demand  them,  the  lad 
would  have  had  a  fair  chance  to  get  a  living  out  of  the  State 
as  the  occupant  of  a  workhouse,  or  penitentiary. 

The  attempt  to  establish  a  school  for  African  girls  at 
Canterbury,  Connecticut,  has  made  too  much  noise  to  need 
a  detailed  account  in  this  volume.  I  do  not  know  the  lady 
who  first  formed  the  project,  but  I  am  told  that  she  is  a 
benevolent  and  religious  woman.  It  certainly  is  difficult  to 
imagine  any  other  motives  than  good  ones,  for  an  undertak- 
ing so  arduous  and  unpopular.  Yet  had  the  Pope  himself 
attempted  to  establish  his  supremacy  over  that  Common- 
wealth, he  could  hardly  have  been  repelled  with  more  de- 
termined and  angry  resistance.  Town-meetings  were  held, 
the  records  of  which  are  not  highly  creditable  to  the  parties 
concerned.  Petitions  were  sent  to  the  Legislature,  beseech- 
ing that  no  African  school  might  be  allowed  to  admit  indi- 
viduals not  residing  in  the  town  where  said  school  was  es- 
tablished ;  and  strange  to  relate,  this  law,  which  makes  it 
impossible  to  collect  a  sufficient  number  of  pupils,  was  sanc- 
tioned by  the  State.  A  colored  girl,  who  availed  herself  of 
this  opportunity  to  gain  instruction,  was  warned  out  of  town, 
and  fined  for  not  complying  ;  and  the  instructress  was  im- 
prisoned for  persevering  in  her  benevolent  plan. 

It  was  said,  in  excuse,  that  Canterbury  would  be  inun- 
dated with  vicious  characters,  who  would  corrupt  the  morals 
of  the  young  men ;  that  such  a  school  would  break  down 
the  distinctions  between  black  and  white  ;  and  that  marriages 
between  people  of  different  colors  would  be  the  probable 
result.  Yet  they  assumed  the  ground  that  colored  people 
must  always  be  an  inferior  and  degraded  class — that  the 
prejudice  against  them  must  be  eternal ;  being  deeply  founded 
in  the  laws  of  God  and  nature.  Finally,  they  endeavored 
to  represent  the  school  as  one  of  the  incendiary  proceedings 
of  the  Anti-Slavery  Society ;  and  they  appealed  to  the  Col- 
onization Society,  as  an  aggrieved  child  is  wont  to  appeal  to 
its  parent. 

The  objection  with  regard  to  the  introduction  of  vicious 
characters  into  a  village,  certainly  has  some  force  ;  but  are 
such  persons  likely  to  leave  cities  for  a  quiet  country  town, 
in  search  of  moral  and  intellectual  improvement  ?  Is  it  not 
obvious  that  the  best  portion  of  the  colored  class  are  the  very 
ones  to  prize  such  an  opportunity  for  instruction  ?  Grant 
tjiat  a  large  proportion  of  these  unfortunate  people  are  vicious 


PREJUDICES    AGAINST    PEOPLE    OF    COLOll. 

—-is  it  not  our  duty,  and  of  course  our  wisest  policy,  to  try 
to  make  them  otherwise  ?  And  what  will  so  effectually  ele- 
vato  their  character  and  condition,  as  knowledge  ?  I  beseech 
you,  my  countrymen,  think  of  these  things  wisely,  and  in 
season. 

As  for  intermarriages,  if  there  be  such  a  repugnance  be- 
tween  the  two  races,  founded  in  the  laws  of  nature,  methinks 
there  is  small  reason  to  dread  their  frequency. 

The  breaking  down  of  distinctions  in  society,  by  means  of 
extended  information,  is  an  objection  which  appropriately 
belongs  to  the  Emperor  of  Austria,  or  the  Sultan  of  Egypt. 

I  do  not  know  how  the  affair  at  Canterbury  is  generally 
considered :  but  I  have  heard  individuals  of  all  parties  and 
all  opinions  speak  of  it — and  never  without  merriment  or 
indignation.  Fifty  years  hence,  the  black  laws  of  Connec- 
ticut will  bo  a  greater  source  of  amusement  to  the  antiquarian, 
than  her  famous  Hue  laws. 

A  similar,  though  less  violent  opposition  arose  in  conse- 
quence of  the  attempt  to  establish  a  college  for  colored  people 
at  New-Haven.  A  young  colored  man,  who  tried  to  obtain 
education  at  the  Wesleyan  college  in  Middletown,  was  obliged 
to  relinquish  the  attempt  on  account  of  the  persecution  of  his 
fellow  students.  Some  collegians  from  the  South  objected 
to  a  colored  associate  in  their  recitations  ;  and  those  from 
New-England  promptly  and  zealously  joined  in  the  hue  and 
cry.  A  small  but  firm  party  were  in  favor  of  giving  the 
colored  man  a  chance  to  pursue  his  studies  without  insult  or 
interruption  ;  and  I  am  told  that  this  manly  and  disinterested 
band  were  all  Southerners.  As  for  those  individuals,  who 
exerted  their  influence  to  exclude  an  unoffending  fellow-citi- 
zen from  privileges  which  ought  to  be  equally  open  to  all,  it 
is  to  be  hoped  that  age  will  make  them  wiser — and  that  they 
will  learn,  before  they  die,  to  be  ashamed  of  a  step  attended 
with  more  important  results  than  usually  belong  to  youthful 
follies. 

It  happens  that  these  experiments  have  all  been  made  in 
Connecticut;  but  it  is  no  more  than  justice  to  that  State  to 
remark  that  a  similar  spirit  would  probably  have  been  man- 
ifested in  Massachusetts,  under  like  circumstances.  At  our 
debating  clubs  and  other  places  of  public  discussion,  the 
demon  of  prejudice  girds  himself  for  the  battle,  the  moment 
negro  colleges  and  high  schools  are  alluded  to.  Alas,  while 
we  carry  on  our  lips  that  religion  which  teaches  us  to  "  love 


OUR    DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THlS    SUBJECT.       201 

Our  neighbors  as  ourselves,"  how  little  do  we  cherish  its 
blessed  influence  within  our  hearts !  How  much  republi- 
canism we  have  to  speak  of,  and  how  little  do  we  practise ! 

Let  us  seriously  consider  what  injury  a  negro  college  could 
possibly  do  us.  It  is  certainly  a  fair  presumption  that  the 
scholars  would  be  from  the  better  portion  of  the  colored 
population  ;  and  it  is  an  equally  fair  presumption  that  knowl- 
edge would  improve  their  characters.  There  are  already 
many  hundreds  of  colored  people  in  the  city  of  Boston.  In 
the  street  they  generally  appear  neat  and  respectable;  and  in 
our  houses  they  do  not  "  come  between  the  wind  and  our 
nobility."  Would  the  addition  of  one  or  two  hundred  more 
even  be  perceived  ?  As  for  giving  offence  to  the  Southerners 
by  allowing  such  establish ments-^-they  have  no  right  to  in- 
terfere with  our  internal  concerns,  any  more  than  we  have 
with  theirs.  Why  should  they  not  give  up  slavery  to  please 
us,  by  the  same  rule  that  we  must  refrain  from  educating 
the  negroes  to  please  them  ?  If  they  are  at  liberty  to  do 
wrong,  we  certainly  ought  to  be  at  liberty  to  do  right.  They 
may  talk  and  publish  as  much  about  us  as  they  please ;  and 
we  ask  for  no  other  influence  over  them. 

It  is  a  fact  not  generally  known  that  the  brave  Kosciusko 
left  a  fund  for  the  establishment  of  a  negro  college  in  the 
United  States.  Little  did  he  think  he  had  been  fighting  for 
a  people,  who  would  not  grant  one  rood  of  their  vast  territory 
for  the  benevolent  purpose  ! 

According  to  present  appearances,  a  college  for  colored 
persons  will  be  established  in  Canada ;  and  thus  by  means 
of  our  foolish  and  wicked  pride,  the  credit  of  this  philanthropic 
enterprise  will  be  transferred  to  our  mother  country. 

The  preceding  chapters  show  that  it  has  been  no  un- 
common thing  for  colored  men  to  be  educated  at  English, 
German,  Portuguese,  and  Spanish  Universities. 

In  Boston  there  is  an  Infant  School,  three  Primary  Schools, 
and  a  Grammar  School.  The  two  last  are,  I  believe,  sup. 
ported  by  the  public  ;  and  this  fact  is  highly  creditable. 

I  was  much  pleased  with  the  late  resolution  awarding 
Franklin  medals  to  the  colored  pupils  of  the  grammar  school; 
and  I  was  still  more  pleased  with  the  laudable  project,  orig- 
inated by  Josiah  Holbrook,  Esq.,  for  the  establishment  of  a 
colored  Lyceum.  Surely  a  better  spirit  is  beginning  to  work 
in  this  cause ;  and  when  once  begun,  the  good  sense  and 
good  feeling  of  the  community  will  bid  it  go  on  and  prosper. 


202     PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR. 

How  much  this  spirit  will  have  to  contend  with  is  illustrated 
by  the  following  fact.  When  President  Jackson  entered  this 
city,  the  white  children  of  all  the  schools  were  sent  out  in 
uniform,  to  do  him  honor.  A  member  of  the  Committee  pro- 
posed  that  the  pupils  of  the  African  schools  should  be  invited 
likewise  ;  but  he  was  the  only  one  who  voted  for  it.  He 
then  proposed  that  the  yeas  and  nays  should  be  recorded ; 
upon  which,  most  of  the  gentlemen  walked  off,  to  prevent 
the  question  from  being  taken.  Perhaps  they  felt  an  awk- 
ward consciousness  of  the  incongeniality  of  such  proceedings 
with  our  republican  institutions.  By  order  of  the  Committee 
the  vacation  of  the  African  schools  did  not  commence  until 
the  day  after  the  procession  of  the  white  .pupils ;  and  a  note 
to  the  instructor  intimated  that  the  pupils  were  not  expected 
to  appear  on  the  Common.  The  reason  given  was  because 
"their  numbers  were  so  few;"  but  in  private  conversation, 
fears  were  expressed  lest  their  sable  faces  should  give  offence 
to  our  slaveholding  President.  In  all  probability  the  sight 
of  the  colored  children  would  have  been  agreeable  to  Gen- 
eral Jackson,  and  seemed  more  like  home,  than  any  thing 
he  witnessed. 

In  the  theatre,  it  is  not  possible  for  respectable  colored 
people  to  obtain  a  decent  seat.  They  must  either  be  ex- 
cluded, or  herd  with  the  vicious. 

A  fierce  excitement  prevailed,  not  long  since,  because  a 
colored  man  had  bought  a  pew  in  one  of  our  churches.  I 
heard  a  very  kind-hearted  and  zealous  democrat  declare  his 
opinion  that  "  the  fellow  ought  to  be  turned  out  by  constables, 
if  he  dared  to  occupy  the  pew  he  had  purchased."  Even 
at  the  communion-table,  the  mockery  of  human  pride  is 
mingled  with  the  worship  of  Jehovah.  Again  and  again 
have  I  seen  a  solitary  negro  come  up  to  the  altar  meekly  and 
timidly,  after  all  the  white  communicants  had  retired.  One 
Episcopal  clergyman  of  this  city,  forms  an  honorable  excep- 
tion to  this  remark.  When  there  is  room  at  the  altar,  Mr. 

often  makes  a  signal  to  the  colored  members  of  his 

church  to  kneel  beside  their  white  brethren ;  and  once,  when 
two  white  infants  and  one  colored  one  were  to  be  baptized, 
and  the  parents  of  the  latter  bashfully  lingered  far  behind 
the  others,  he  silently  rebuked  the  unchristian  spirit  of  pride, 
by  first  administering  the  holy  ordinance  to  the  little  dark- 
skinned  child  of  God. 

An  instance  of  prejudice  lately  occurred,  which  I  should 


OUR    DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT.         203 

find  it  hard  to  believe,  did  I  not  positively  know  it  to  be  a  fact. 
A  gallery  pew  was  purchased  in  one  of  our  churches  for 
two  hundred  dollars.  A  few  Sabbaths  after,  an  address  was 
delivered  at  that  church,  in  favor  of  the  Afri;ans.  Some 
colored  people,  who  very  naturally  wished  to  hear  the  dis- 
course, went  into  the  gallery  ;  probably  because  they  thought 
they  should  be  deemed  less  intrusive  there  than  elsewhere. 
The  man  who  had  recently  bought  a  pew.  found  it  occupied 
by  colored  people,  and  indignantly  retired  with  his  family. 
The  next  day,  he  purchased  a  pew  in  another  meeting-house, 
protesting  that  nothing  would  tempt  him  again  to  make  use 
of  seats,  that  had  been  occupied  by  negroes. 

A  well  known  country  representative,  who  makes  a  very 
loud  noise  about  his  democracy,  once  attended  the  Catholic 
church.  A  pious  negro  requested  him  to  take  off  his  hat, 
while  he  stood  in  the  presence  of  the  Virgin  Mary.  The 
white  man  rudely  shoved  him  aside,  saying,  "  You  son  of  an 
Ethiopian,  do  you  dare  to  speak  to  me  !"  I  more  than  once 
heard  the  hero  repeat  this  story ;  and  he  seemed  to  take 
peculiar  satisfaction  in  telling  it.  Had  he  been  less  ignorant, 
he  would  not  have  chosen  "  son  of  an  Ethiopian"  as  an  ignoble 
epithet ;  to  have  called  the  African  his  own  equal  would 
have  been  abundantly  more  sarcastic.  The  same  republi- 
can dismissed  a  strong,  industrious  colored  man,  who  had 
been  employed  on  the  farm  during  his  absence.  "  I  am  too 
great  a  democrat,"  quoth  he,  "  to  have  any  body  in  my  house, 
who  don't  sit  at  my  table ;  and  I'll  be  hanged,  if  I  ever  eat 
with  the  son  of  an  Ethiopian." 

Men  whose  education  leaves  them  less  excuse  for  such 
illiberality,  are  yet  vulgar  enough  to  join  in  this  ridiculous 
prejudice.  The  colored  woman,  whose  daughter  has  been 
mentioned  as  excluded  from  a  private  school,  was  once  smug- 
gled into  a  stage,  upon  the  supposition  that  she  was  a  white 
woman,  with  a  sallow  complexion.  Her  manners  were 
modest  and  prepossessing,  and  the  gentlemen  were  very 
polite  to  her.  But  when  she  stopped  at  her  own  door,  and 
was  handed  out  by  her  curly-headed  husband,  they  were  at 
once  surprised  and  angry  to  find  they  had  been  riding  with 
a  mulatto — and  had,  in  their  ignorance,  been  really  civil  to 
her! 

A  worthy  colored  woman,  belonging  to  an  adjoining  town, 
wished  to  come  into  Boston  to  attend  upon  a  son,  who  was  ill. 
She  had  a  trunk  with  her,  and  was  too  feeble  to  walk.  She 


204    PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR. 

begged  permission  to  ride  in  the  stage.  But  the  passengers 
with  nolle  indignation,  declared  they  would  get  out,  if  she 
were  allowed  to  get  in.  After  much  entreaty,  the  driver 
suffered  her  to  sit  by  him  upon  the  box.  When  he  entered 
the  city,  his  comrades  began  to  point  and  sneer.  Not  having 
sufficient  moral  courage  to  endure  this,  he  left  the  poor  wo- 
man,  with  her  trunk,  in  the  middle  of  the  street,  far  from 
the  place  of  her  destination  ;  telling  her,  with  an  oath,  that 
he  would  not  carry  her  a  step  further. 

A  friend  of  mine  lately  wished  to  have  a  colored  girl 
admitted  into  the  stage  with  her,  to  take  care  of  her  babe. 
The  girl  was  very  lightly  tinged  with  the  sable  hue,  had 
handsome  Indian  features,  and  very  pleasing  manners.  It 
was,  however,  evident  that  she  was  not  white ;  and  there- 
fore  the  passengers  objected  to  her  company.  This  of  course, 
produced  a  good  deal  of  inconvenience  on  one  side,  and  mor- 
tification on  the  other.  My  friend  repeated  the  circumstance 
to  a  lady,  who,  as  the  daughter  and  wife  of  a  clergyman, 
might  be  supposed  to  have  imbibed  some  liberality.  The 
lady  seemed  to  think  the  experiment  was  very  preposterous; 
but  when  my  friend  alluded  to  the  mixed  parentage  of  the 
girl,  she  exclaimed,  with  generous  enthusiasm,  "  Oh,  that 
alters  the  case,  Indians  certainly  have  their  rights." 

Every  year  a  colored  gentleman  and  scholar  is  becoming 
less  and  less  of  a  rarity — thanks  to  the  existence  of  the 
Haytian  Republic,  and  the  increasing  liberality  of  the  world  ! 
Yet  if  a  person  of  refinement  from  Hayti,  Brazil,  or  other 
countries,  which  we  deem  less  enlightened  than  our  own, 
should  visit  us,  the  very  boys  of  this  republic  would  dog  his 
footsteps  with  the  vulgar  outcry  of  "  Nigger  !  Nigger!"  I 
have  known  this  to  be  done,  from  no  other  provocation  than 
the  sight  of  a  colored  man  with  the  dress  and  deportment 
of  a  gentleman.  Were  it  not  that  republicanism,  like  Chris- 
tianity, is  often  perverted  from  its  true  spirit  by  the  bad  pas- 
sions of  mankind,  such  things  as  these  would  make  every 
honest  mind  disgusted  with  the  very  name  of  republics. 

I  am  acquainted  with  a  gentleman  from  Brazil  who  is 
shrewd,  enterprising,  and  respectable  in  character  and  man- 
ners ;  yet  he  has  experienced  almost  every  species  of  indig- 
nity on  account  of  his  color.  Not  long  since,  it  became 
necessary  for  him  to  visit  the  southern  shores  of  Massachu- 
setts, to  settle  certain  accounts  connected  with  his  business. 
His  wife  was  in  a  feeble  state  of  health,  and  the  physicians 


OUR   DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT.        205 

had  recommended  a  voyage.  For  this  reason,  he  took  pas- 
sage for  her  with  himself  in  the  steam-boat ;  and  the  captain, 
as  it  appears,  made  no  objection  to  a  colored  gentleman's 

money.     After  remaining  on  deck  some  time,  Mrs. 

attempted  to  pass  into  the  cabin;  but  the  captain  prevented 
her  ;  saying,  "  You  must  go  down  forward."  The  Brazilian 
urged  that  he  had  paid  the  customary  price,  and  therefore 
his  wife  and  infant  had  a  right  to  a  place  in  the  ladies'  cabin. 
The  captain  answered,  "  Your  wife  a'n't  a  lady ;  she  is  a 
nigger."  The  forward  cabin  was  occupied  by  sailors  ;  was 
entirely  without  accommodations  for  women,  and  admitted 
the  sea- water,  so  that  a  person  could  not  sit  in  it  comfortably 
without  keeping  the  feet  raised  in  a  chair.  The  husband 
stated  that  his  wife's  health  would  not  admit  of  such  expo- 
sure ;  to  which  the  captain  still  replied,  "  I  don't  allow  any 
niggers  in  my  cabin."  With  natural  and  honest  indignation, 
the  Brazilian  exclaimed,  "You  Americans  talk  about  the 
Poles  !  You  are  a  great  deal  more  Russian  than  the  Rus- 
sians." The  affair  was  concluded  by  placing  the  colored 
gentleman  and  his  invalid  wife  on  the  shore,  and  leaving  them 
to  provide  for  themselves  as  they  could.  Had  the  cabin  been 
full,  there  would  have  been  some  excuse ;  but  it  was  occu- 
pied only  by  two  sailors'  wives.  The  same  individual  sent 
for  a  relative  in  a  distant  town  on  account  of  illness  in  his 
family.  After  staying  several  weeks,  it  became  necessary 
for  her  to  return  ;  and  he  procured  a  seat  for  her  in  the 
stage.  The  same  ridiculous  scene  occurred  ;  the  passengers 
were  afraid  of  losing  their  dignity  by  riding  with  a  neat  re- 
spectable person,  whose  face  was  darker  than  their  own.  No 
public  vehicle  could  be  obtained,  by  which  a  colored  citizen 
could  be  conveyed  to  her  home  ;  it  therefore  became  abso- 
lutely necessary  for  the  gentleman  to  leave  his  business  and 
hire  a  chaise  at  great  expense.  Such  proceedings  are  really 
inexcusable.  No  authority  can  be  found  for  them  in  religion, 
reason,  or  the  laws. 

The  Bible  informs  us  that  "  a  man  of  Ethiopia,  a  eunuch 
of  great  authority  under  Candace,  Queen  of  the  Ethiopians, 
wha  had  charge  of  all  her  treasure,  came  to  Jerusalem  to 
worship."  Returning  in  his  chariot,  he  read  Esaias,  the 
Prophet ;  and  at  his  request  Philip  went  up  into  the  chariot 
and  sat  with  him,  explaining  the  Scriptures.  Where  should 
we  now  find  an  apostle,  who  would  ride  in  the  same  chariot 
with  an  Ethiopian ! 

18 


206    PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR. 

Will  any  candid  person  tell  me  why  respectable  colored 
people  should  not  be  allowed  to  make  use  of  public  con- 
veyances,  open  to  all  who  are  able  and  willing  to  pay  for 
the  privilege  ?  Those  who  enter  a  vessel,  or  a  stage-coach, 
cannot  expect  to  select  their  companions.  If  they  can  afford 
to  take  a  carriage  or  boat  for  themselves,  then,  and  then  only, 
they  have  a  right  to  be  exclusive.  I  was  lately  talking  with 
a  young  gentleman  on  this  subject,  who  professed  to  have  no 
prejudice  against  colored  people,  except  so  far  as  they  were 
ignorant  and  vulgar ;  but  still  he  could  not  tolerate  the  idea 
of  allowing  them  to  enter  stages  and  steam-boats.  "  Yet, 
vou  allow  the  same  privilege  to  vulgar  and  ignorant  white 
men,  without  a  murmur,"  I  replied ;  "  Pray  give  a  good 
republican  reason  why  a  respectable  colored  citizen  should 
be  less  favored."  For  want  of  a  better  argument,  he  said — 
(pardon  me,  fastidious  reader) — he  implied  that  the  presence 
of  colored  persons  was  less  agreeable  than  Otto  of  Rose,  or 
Eau  de  Cologne ;  and  this  distinction,  he  urged  was  made 
by  God  himself.  I  answered,  "  Whoever  takes  his  chance 
in  a  public  vehicle,  is  liable  to  meet  with  uncleanly  white 
passengers,  whose  breath  may  be  redolent  with  the  fumes  of 
American  cigars,  or  American  gin.  Neither  of  these  arti- 
cles have  a  fragrance  peculiarly  agreeable  to  nerves  of  deli- 
cate  organization.  Allowing  your  argument  double  the 
weight  it  deserves,  it  is  utter  nonsense  to  pretend  that  the 
inconvenience  in  the  case  I  have  supposed  is  not  infinitely 
greater.  But  what  is  more  to  the  point,  do  you  dine  in  a 
fashionable  hotel,  do  you  sail  in  a  fashionable  steam-boat,  do 
you  sup  at  a  fashionable  house,  without  having  negro  ser- 
vants behind  your  chair.  Would  they  be  any  more  disa- 
greeable, as  passengers  seated  in  the  corner  of  a  stage,  or  a 
steam-boat,  than  as  waiters  in  such  immediate  attendance 
Upon  your  person  ?" 

Stage-drivers  are  very  much  perplexed  when  they  attempt 
to  vindicate  the  present  tyrannical  customs ;  and  they  usually 
give  up  the  point,  by  saying  they  themselves  have  no  preju- 
dice against  colored  people — they  are  merely  afraid  of  the 
public.  But  stage-drivers  should  remember  that  in  a  popular 
government,  they,  in  common  with  every  other  citizen,  form 
a  part  and  portion  of  the  dreaded  public. 

The  gold  was  never  coined  for  which  I  would  barter  my 
individual  freedom  of  acting  and  thinking  upon  any  subject, 
or  knowingly  interfere  with  the  rights  of  the  meanest  human 


OUR    DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT.         207 

being.  The  only  true  courage  is  that  which  impels  us  to  do 
right  without  regard  to  consequences.  To  fear  a  populace 
is  as  servile  as  to  fear  an  emperor.  The  only  salutary 
restraint  is  the  fear  of  doing  wrong. 

Our  representatives  to  Congress  have  repeatedly  rode  in 
a  stage  with  colored  servants  at  the  request  of  their  masters. 
Whether  this  is  because  New-Englanders  are  willing  to  do 
out  of  courtesy  to  a  Southern  gentleman,  what  they  object 
to  doing  from  justice  to  a  colored  citizen, — or  whether  those 
representatives,  being  educated  men,  were  more  than  usually 
divested  of  this  absurd  prejudice, — I  will  not  pretend  to  say. 

The  state  of  public  feeling  not  only  makes  it  difficult  for 
the  Africans  to  obtain  information,  but  it  prevents  them  from, 
making  profitable  use  of  what  knowledge  they  have.  A 
colored  man,  however  intelligent,  is  not  allowed  to  pursue 
any  business  more  lucrative  than  that  of  a  barber,  a  shoe- 
black, or  a  waiter.  These,  and  all  other  employments,  are 
truly  respectable,  whenever  the  duties  connected  with  them 
are  faithfully  performed ;  but  it  is  unjust  that  a  man  should, 
on  account  of  his  complexion,  be  prevented  from  performing 
more  elevated  uses  in  society.  Every  citizen  ought  to  have 
a  fair  chance  to  try  his  fortune  in  any  line  of  business,  which 
he  thinks  he  has  ability  to  transact.  Why  should  not  colored 
men  be  employed  in  the  manufactories  of  various  kinds  ?  If 
their  ignorance  is  an  objection,  let  them  be  enlightened,  as 
speedily  as  possible.  If  their  moral  character  is  not  suffi- 
ciently pure,  remove  the  pressure  of  public  scorn,  and  thus 
supply  them  with  motives  for  being  respectable.  All  this 
can  be  done.  It  merely  requires  an  earnest  wish  to  over- 
come a  prejudice,  which  has  "  grown  with  our  growth  and 
strengthened  with  our  strength,"  but  which  is  in  fact  opposed 
to  the  spirit  of  our  religion,  and  contrary  to  the  instinctive 
good  feelings  of  our  nature.  When  examined  by  the  clear 
light  of  reason,  it  disappears.  Prejudices  of  all  kinds  have 
their  strongest  holds  in-  the  minds  of  the  vulgar  and  the 
ignorant.  In  a  community  so  enlightened  as  our  own,  they 
must  gradually  melt  away  under  the  influence  of  public  dis- 
cussion. There  is  no  want  of  kind  feelings  and  liberal  sen* 
timents  in  the  American  people ;  the  simple  fact  is,  they  have 
not  thought  upon  this  subject.  An  active  and  enterprising 
community  are  not  apt  to  concern  themselves  about  laws  and 
customs,  which  do  not  obviously  interfere  with  their  interests 
or  convenience ;  and  various  political  and  prudential  motives 


208     PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR. 

have  combined  to  fetter  free  inquiry  in  this  direction.  Thus 
we  have  gone  on,  year  after  year,  thoughtlessly  sanctioning, 
by  our  silence  and  indifference,  evils  -which  our  hearts  and 
consciences  are  far  enough  from  apprdving. 

It  has  been  shown  that  no  other  people  on  earth  indulge 
so  strong  a  prejudice  with  regard  to  color,  as  we  do.  It  is 
urged  that  negroes  are  civilly  treated  in  England,  because 
their  numbers  are  so  few.  I  could  never  discover  any  great 
force  in  this  argument.  Colored  people  are  certainly  not 
sufficiently  rare  in  that  country  to  be  regarded  as  a  great 
show,  like  a  giraffe,  or  a  Sandwich  Island  king ;  and  on  the 
other  hand,  it  would  seem  natural  that  those  who  were  more 
accustomed  to  the  sight  of  dark  faces  would  find  their  aver- 
sion diminished,  rather  than  increased. 

The  absence  of  prejudice  in  the  Portuguese  and  Spanish 
settlements  is  accounted  for,  by  saying  that  the  white  people 
are  very  little  superior  to  the  negroes  in  knowledge  and  re- 
finement. But  Doctor  Walsh's  book  certainly  gives  us  no 
reason  to  think  meanly  of  the  Brazilians ;  and  it  has  been 
my  good  fortune  to  be  acquainted  with  many  highly  intelli- 
gent South  Americans,  who  were  divested  of  this  prejudice, 
and  much  surprised  at  its  existence  here. 

If  the  South  Americans  are  really  in  such  a  low  state  as 
the  argument  implies,  it  is  a  still  greater  disgrace  to  us  to 
be  outdone  in  liberality  and  consistent  republicanism  by  men 
so  much  less  enlightened  than  ourselves. 

Pride  will  doubtless  hold  out  with  strength  and  adroitness 
against  the  besiegers  of  its  fortress ;  but  it  is  an  obvious  truth 
that  the  condition  of  the  world  is  rapidly  improving,  and  that 
our  laws  and  customs  must  change  with  it. 

Neither  ancient  nor  modern  history  furnishes  a  page  more 
glorious  than  the  last  twenty  years  in  England  ;  for  at  every 
step,  free  principles,  after  a  long  and  arduous  struggle,  have 
conquered  selfishness  and  tyranny.  Almost  all  great  evils 
are  resisted  by  individuals  who  directly  suffer  injustice  or 
inconvenience  from  them ;  but  it  is  a  peculiar  beauty  of  the 
abolition  cause  that  its  defenders  enter  the  lists  against  wealth, 
and  power,  and  talent,  not  to  defend  their  own  rights,  but  to 
protect  weak  and  injured  neighbors,  who  are  not  allowed  to 
speak  for  themselves. 

Those  who  become  interested  in  a  cause  laboring  so 
heavily  under  the  pressure  of  present  unpopularity,  must 
expect  to  be  assailed  by  every  form  of  bitterness  and  sophis- 


OTJR    DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT.        209 

try.  At  times,  discouraged  and  heart-sick,  they  will  perhaps 
begin  to  doubt  whether  there  are  in  reality  any  unalterable 
principles  of  right  and  wrong.  But  let  them  cast  aside  the 
fear  of  man,  and  keep  their  minds  fixed  on  a  few  of  the  simple, 
unchangeable  laws  of  God,  and  they  will  certainly  receive 
strength  to  contend  with  the  adversary. 

Paragraphs  in  the  Southern  papers  already  begin  to  imply 
that  the  United  States  will  not  look  tamely  on,  while  Eng- 
land emancipates  her  slaves ;  and  they  inform  us  that  the 
inspection  of  the  naval  stations  has  become  a  subject  of  great 
importance  since  the  recent  measures  of  the  British  Parlia- 
ment. A  republic  declaring  war  with  a  monarchy,  because 
she  gave  freedom  to  her  slaves,  would  indeed  form  a  beau- 
tiful moral  picture  for  the  admiration  of  the  world ! 

Mr.  Garrison  was  the  first  person  who  dared  to  edit  a 
newspaper,  in  which  slavery  was  spoken  of  as  altogether 
wicked  and  inexcusable.  For  this  crime  the  Legislature  of 
Georgia  have  offered  five  thousand  dollars  to  any  one  who 
will  "  arrest  and  prosecute  him  to  conviction  under  the  laws 
of  that  State."  An  association  of  gentlemen  in  South  Caro- 
lina have  likewise  offered  a  large  reward  for  the  same  object. 
It  is,  to  say  the  least,  a  very  remarkable  step  for  one  State 
in  this  Union  to  promulgate  such  a  law  concerning  a  citizen 
of  another  State,  merely  for  publishing  his  opinions  boldly. 
The  disciples  of  Fanny  Wright  promulgate  the  most  zealous 
and  virulent  attacks  upon  Christianity,  without  any  hindrance 
from  the  civil  authorities ;  and  this  is  done  upon  the  truly 
rational  ground  that  individual  freedom  of  opinion  ought  to 
be  respected — that  what  is  false  cannot  stand,  and  what  is 
true  cannot  be  overthrown.  We  leave  Christianity  to  take 
care  of  itself;  but  slavery  is  a  "delicate  subject," — and 
whoever  attacks  that  must  be  punished.  Mr.  Garrison  is  a 
disinterested,  intelligent,  and  remarkably  pure-minded  man, 
whose  only  fault  is  that  he  cannot  be  moderate  on  a  subject 
which  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  for  an  honest  mind  to  examine 
with  calmness.  Many  who  highly  respect  his  character  and 
motives,  regret  his  tendency  to  use  wholesale  and  unquali- 
fied expressions ;  but  it  is  something  to  have  the  truth  told, 
even  if  it  be  not  in  the  mildest  way.  Where  an  evil  is 
powerfully  supported  by  the  self-interest  and  prejudice  of  the 
community,  none  but  an  ardent  individual  will  venture  to 
meddle  with  it.  Luther  was  deemed  indiscreet  even  by  those 
who  liked  him  best ;  yet  a  more  prudent  man  would  never 


210     PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OP  COLOR. 

have  given  an  impetus  sufficiently  powerful  to  heave  the  great 
mass  of  corruption  under  which  the  church  was  buried. 
Mr.  Garrison  has  certainly  the  merit  of  having  first  called 
public  attention  to  a  neglected  and  very  important  subject.* 
I  believe  whoever  fairly  and  dispassionately  examines  the 
question,  will  be  more  than  disposed  to  forgive  the  occasional 
faults  of  an  ardent  temperament,  in  consideration  of  the  dif- 
ficulty of  the  undertaking,  and  the  violence  with  which  it 
has  been  opposed. 

The  palliator  of  slavery  assures  the  abolitionists  that  their 
benevolence  is  perfectly  quixotic — that  the  negroes  are  happy 
and  contented,  and  have  no  desire  to  change  their  lot.  An 
answer  to  this  may,  as  I  have  already  said,  be  found  in  the 
Judicial  Reports  of  slaveholding  States,  in  the  vigilance  of 
their  laws,  in  advertisements  for  runaway  slaves,  and  in  the 
details  of  their  own  newspapers.  The  West  India  planters 
make  the  same  protestations  concerning  the  happiness  of 
their  slaves  ;  yet  the  cruelties  proved  by  undoubted  and 
unanswerable  testimony  are  enough  to  sicken  the  heart.  It 
is,  said  that  slavery  is  a  great  deal  worse  in  the  West  Indies 
than  in  the  United  States  ;  but  I  believe  precisely  the  reverse 
of  this  proposition  has  been  true  within  late  years  ;  for  the 
English  government  have  been  earnestly  trying  to  atone  for 
their  guilt,  by  the  introduction  of  laws  expressly  framed  to 
guard  the  weak  and  defenceless.  A  gentleman  who  has 
been  a  great  deal  among  the  planters  of  both  countries,  and 
who  is  by  no  means  favorable  to  anti-slavery,  gives  it  as  his 
decided  opinion  that  the  slaves  are  better  off  in  the  West 
Indies,  than  they  are  in  the  United  States.  It  is  true  we 
hear  a  great  deal  more  about  West  Indian  cruelty  than  we 
do  about  our  own.  English  books  and  periodicals  are  con- 
tinually full  of  the  subject ;  and  even  in  the  colonies,  news- 
papers openly  denounce  the  hateful  system,  and  take  every 
opportunity  to  prove  the  amount  of  wretchedness  it  produces. 
In  this  country,  we  have  not,  until  very  recently,  dared  to 
publish  any  thing  upon  the  subject.  Our  books,  our  reviews, 
our  newspapers,  our  almanacs,  have  all  been  silent,  or  exerted 
their  influence  on  the  wrong  side.  The  negro's  crimes  are 

*  This  remark  is  not  intended  to  indicate  want  of  respect  for  the  early 
exertions  of  the  Friends,  in  their  numerous  manumission  societies ;  or  for 
the  efforts  of  that  staunch,  fearless,  self-sacrificing  friend  of  freedom — 
Benjamin  Lundy ;  but  Mr.  Garrison  was  the  first  that  boldly  attacked 
slavery  as  a  sin,  and  Colonization  as  its  twin  sister. 


OUR  DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT.      211 

repealed,  but  his  sufferings  are  never  told.  Even  in  our 
geographies  it  is  taught  that  the  colored  race  must  always  be 
degraded.  Now  and  then  anecdotes  of  cruelties  committed 
in  the  slaveholding  States  are  told  by  individuals  who  wit- 
nessed them  ;  but  they  are  almost  always  afraid  to  give  their 
names  to  the  public,  because  the  Southerners  will  call  them 
"  a  disgrace  to  the  soil,"  and  the  Northerners  will  echo  the 
sentiment.  The  promptitude  and  earnestness  with  which  New- 
England  has  aided  the  slaveholders  in  repressing  all  discus- 
sions which  they  were  desirous  to  avoid,  has  called  forth 
many  expressions  of  gratitude  in  their  public  speeches,  and 
private  conversation ;  and  truly  we  have  well  earned  Rar}- 
dolph's  favorite  appellation,  "  the  white  slaves  of  the  North," 
by  our  tameness  and  servility  with  regard  to  a  subject  where 
good  feeling  and  good  principle  alike  demand  a  firm  and 
independent  spirit. 

We  are  told  that  the  Southerners  will  of  themselves  do 
away  slavery,  and  they  alone  understand  how  to  do  it.  But 
it  is  an  obvious  fact  that  all  their  measures  have  tended  to 
perpetuate  the  system ;  and  even  if  we  have  the  fullest  faith 
that  they  mean  to  do  their  duty,  the  belief  by  no  means  ab- 
solves us  from  doing  ours.  The  evil  is  gigantic ;  and  its 
removal  requires  every  heart  and  head  in  the  community. 

It  is  said  that  our  sympathies  ought  to  be  given  to  the 
masters,  who  are  abundantly  more  to  be  pitied  than  the 
slaves.  If  this  be  the  case,  the  planters  are  singularly  disin- 
terested not  to  change  places  with  their  bondmen.  Our  sym- 
pathies have  been  given  to  the  masters — and  to  those  masters 
who  seemed  most  desirous  to  remain  for  ever  in  their  pitiable 
condition.  There  are  hearts  at  the  South  sincerely  desirous 
of  doing  right  in  this  cause  ;  but  their  generous  impulses  are 
checked  by  the  laws  of  their  respective  States,  and  the  strong 
disapprobation  of  their  neighbors.  I  know  a  lady  in  Georgia 
who  would,  I  believe,  make  any  personal  sacrifice  to  instruct 
her  slaves,  and  give  them  freedom ;  but  if  she  were  found 
guilty  of  teaching  the  alphabet,  or  manumitting  her  slaves, 
fines  and  imprisonment  would  be  the  consequence ;  if  she 
sold  them,  they  would  be  likely  to  fall  into  hands  less  merciful 
than  her  own.  Of  such  slave-owners  we  cannot  speak  with 
to  much  respect  and  tenderness.  They  are  comparatively 
few  in  number,  and  stand  in  a  most  perplexing  situation ;  it 
is  a  duty  to  give  all  our  sympathy  to  them.  It  is  mere 
mockery  to  say,  what  is  so  often  said,  that  the  Southerners, 


212    PREJUDICES  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR. 

as  a  body,  really  wish  to  abolish  slavery.  If  they  wished 
it,  they  certainly  would  make  the  attempt.  When  the  ma- 
jority heartily  desire  a  change,  it  is  effected,  be  the  difficul- 
ties what  they  may.  The  Americans  are  peculiarly  respon* 
sible  for  the  example  they  give ;  for  in  no  other  country 
does  the  unchecked  voice  of  the  people  constitute  the  whole 
of  government. 

We  must  not  be  induced  to  excuse  slavery  by  the  plausible 
argument  that  En-gland  introduced  it  among  us.  The  wick- 
edness of  beginning  such  a  work  unquestionably  belongs  to 
her ;  the  sin  of  continuing  it  is  certainly  our  own.  It  is  true 
that  Virginia,  while  a  province,  did  petition  the  British  gov- 
ernment to  check  the  introduction  of  slaves  into  the  colonies; 
and  their  refusal  to  do  so  was  afterward  enumerated  among 
the  public  reasons  for  separating  from  the  mother  country  : 
but  it  is  equally  true  that  when  we  became  independent,  the 
Southern  States  stipulated  that  the  slave-trade  should  not  be 
abolished  by  law  until  1808. 

The  strongest  and  best  reason  that  can  be  given  for  our 
supineness  on  the  subject  of  slavery,  is  the  fear  of  dissolving 
the  Union.  The  Constitution  of  the  United  States  demands 
our  highest  reverence.  Those  who  approve,  and  those  who 
disapprove  of  particular  portions,  are  equally  bound  to  yield 
implicit  obedience  to  its  authority.  But  we  must  not  forget 
that  the  Constitution  provides  for  any  change  that  may  be 
required  for  the  general  good.  The  great  machine  is  con- 
structed with  a  safety-valve,  by  which  any  rapidly  increasing 
evil  may  be  expelled  whenever  the  people  desire  it. 

If  the  Southern  politicians  are  determined  to  make  a  Si- 
amese question  of  this  also — if  they  insist  that  the  Union 
shall  not  exist  without  slavery — it  can  only  be  said  that  they 
join  two  things,  which  have  no  affinity  with  each  other, 
and  which  cannot  permanently  exist  together.  They  chain 
the  living  and  vigorous  to  the  diseased  and  dying ;  and  the 
former  will  assuredly  perish  in  the  infected  neighborhood. 

The  universal  introduction  of  free  labor  is  the  surest  way 
to  consolidate  the  Union,  and  enable  us  to  live  together  in 
harmony  and  peace.  If  a  history  is  ever  written  entitled 
"The  Decay  and  Dissolution  of  the  North  American  Republic," 
its  author  will  distinctly  trace  our  downfall  to  the  existence 
of  slavery  among  us. 

There  is  hardly  any  thing  bad,  in  politics  or  religion,  that 
has  not  been  sanctioned  or  tolerated  by  a  suffering  commu- 


OUR    DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT. 

nity,  because  certain  powerful  individuals  were  able  to  identify 
the  evil  with  some  other  principle  long  consecrated  to  the 
hearts  and  consciences  of  men. 

Under  all  circumstances,  there  is  but  o«e  honest  course ; 
and  that  is  to  do  right,  and  trust  the  consequences  to  Divine 
Providence.  "Duties  are  ours  ;  events  are  God's."  Policy, 
with  all  her  cunning,  can  devise  no  rule  so  safe,  salutary, 
and  effective,  as  this  simple  maxim. 

We  cannot  too  cautiously  examine  arguments  and  excuses 
brought  forward  by  those  whose  interest  or  convenience  is 
connected  with  keeping  their  fellow-creatures  in  a  state  of 
ignorance  and  brutality ;  and  such  we  shall  find  in  abun- 
dance, at  the  North  as  well  as  the  South.  I  have  heard  the 
abolition  of  slavery  condemned  on  the  ground  that  New- 
England  vessels  would  not  be  employed  to  export  the  pro- 
duce  of  the  South,  if  they  had  free  laborers  of  their  own. 
This  objection  is  so  utterly  bad  in  its  spirit,  that  it  hardly 
deserves  an  answer.  Assuredly  it  is  a  righteous  plan  to 
retard  the  progress  of  liberal  principles,  and  "  keep  human 
nature  for  ever  in  the  stocks,"  that  some  individuals  may 
make  a  few  hundred  dollars  more  per  annum !  Besides,  the 
experience  of  the  world  abundantly  proves  that  all  such 
forced  expedients  are  unwise.  The  increased  prosperity  of 
one  country,  or  of  one  section  of  a  country,  always  contri- 
butes, in  some  form  or  other,  to  the  prosperity  of  other  states. 
To  "  love  our  neighbor  as  ourselves,"  is,  after  all,  the 
shrewdest  way  of  doing  business. 

In  England,  the  abolition  of  the  traffic  was  long  and  stoutly 
resisted,  in  the  same  spirit,  and  by  the  same  arguments,  that 
characterize  the  defence  of  the  system  here ;  but  it  would 
now  be  difficult  to  find  a  man  so  reckless,  that  he  would  not 
be  ashamed  of  being  called  a  slave-dealer.  Public  opinion 
has  nearly  conquered  one  evil,  and  if  rightly  directed,  it  will 
ultimately  subdue  the  other. 

Is  it  asked  what  can  be  done?  I  answer,  much,  very 
much,  can  be  effected,  if  each  individual  will  try  to  deserve 
the  commendation  bestowed  by  our  Saviour  on  the  woman 
••of  old — "  She  hath  done  what  she  could." 

The  Friends, — always  remarkable  for  fearless  obedience 
-to  the  inward  light  of  conscience, — early  gave  an  example 
worthy  of  being  followed.  At  their  annual  meeting  in  Penn- 
sylvania, in  1688,  many  individuals  urged  the  incompatibility 
of  slavery  and  Christianity  ;  and  .their  zeal  continued  until, 


214     PREJUDICE  AGAINST  PEOPLE  OF  COLOR. 

in  1776,  all  Quakers  who  bought  or  sold  a  slave,  or  refused 
to  emancipate  those  they  already  owned,  were  excluded  from 
com-munion  with  the  society.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  early 
exertions  of  these  excellent  people,  the  fair  and  flourishing 
State  of  Pennsylvania  might  now,  perchance,  be  withering 
under  the  effects  of  slavery.  To  this  day,  the  Society  of 
Friends,  both  in  England  and  America,  ornit  no  opportunity, 
public  or  private,  of  discountenancing  this  bad  system ;  and 
the  Methodists  (at  least  in  England)  have  earnestly  labored 
in  the  same  glorious  cause. 

The  famous  Anthony  Benezet,  a  Quaker  in  Philadelphia, 
has  left  us-  a  noble  example  of  what  may  be  done  for  con- 
science' sake.  Being  a  teacher,  he  took  effectual  care  that 
his  scholars  should  have  ample  knowledge  and  Christian  im- 
pressions concerning  the  nature  of  slavery  j  he  caused  articles 
to  be  inserted  in  the  almanacs  likely  to  arrest  public  attention 
upon  the  subject ;  he  talked  about  it,  and  wrote  letters  about 
it ;  he  published  and  distributed  tracts  at  his  own  expense  ; 
if  any  person  was  going  a  journey,  his  first  thought  was  how 
he  could  make  hin>  instrumental  in  favor  of  his  benevolent 
purposes ;  he  addressed  a  petition  to  the  Queen  for  the  sup- 
pression  of  the  slave-trade ;  and  another  to  the  good  Countess 
of  Huntingdon,  beseeching  that  the  rice  and  indigo  plantations 
belonging  to  the  orphan-house,  which  she  had  endowed  near 
Savannah,  in  Georgia,  might  not  be  cultivated  by  those  who 
encouraged  the  slave-trade ;  he  took  eare  to  increase  the 
comforts  and  elevate  the  character  of  the  colored  people 
within  his  influence;  he  zealously  promoted  the  establish- 
ment of  an  African  school,  and  devoted  much  of  the  two 
last  years  of  his  life  to  personal  attendance  upon  his  pupils. 
By  fifty  years  of  constant  industry  he  had  amassed  a  small 
fortune  ;  and  this  was  left  after  the  decease  of  his  widow,  to 
the  support  of  the  African  school. 

Similar  exertions,  though  on  a  less  extensive  scale,  were 
made  by  the  late  excellent  John  Kenrick,  of  Newton,  Mass. 
For  more  than  thirty  years  the  constant  object  of  his  thoughts, 
and  the  chief  purpose  of  his  life,  was  the  abolition  of  slavery. 
His  earnest  conversation  aroused  many  other  minds  to  think 
and  act  upon  the  subject.  He  wrote  letters,  inserted  articles. 
in  the  newspapers,  gave  liberal  donations,  and  circulated 
pamphlets  at  his  own  expense. 

Cowper  contributed  much  to  the  cause  when  he  wrote  the 
'  Negro's  Complaint,"  and  thus  excited  the  compassion  of 


OUR   DUTIES    IN   RELATION   TO   THIS    SUBJECT.        315 

his  numerous  readers.  Wedgewood  aided  the  work,  when 
he  caused  cameos  to  be  struck,  representing  a  kneeling  Af- 
rican in  chains,  and  thus  made  even  capricious  fashion  an 
avenue  to  the  heart.  Clarkson  assisted  by  patient  investi- 
gation of  evidence ;  and  Fox  and  Wilberforce  by  eloquent 
speeches.  Mungo  Park  gave  his  powerful  influence  by  the 
kind  and  liberal  manner  in  which  he  always  represented  the 
Africans.  The  Duchess  of  Devonshire  wrote  verses  and 
caused  them  to  be  set  to  music ;  and  wherever  those  lines 
were  sung,  some  hearts  were  touched  in  favor  of  the  op- 
pressed. This  fascinating  woman  made  even  her  far-famed 
beauty  serve  in  the  cause  of  benevolence.  Fox  was  returned 
for  Parliament  through  her  influence,  and  she  is  said  to  have 
procured  more  than  one  vote,  by  allowing  the  yeomanry  of 
England  to  kiss  her  beautiful  cheek. 

All  are  not  able  to  do  so  much  as  Anthony  Benezet  and 
John  Kenrick  have  done ;  but  we  can  all  do  something. 
We  can  speak  kindly  and  respectfully  of  colored  people  upon 
all  occasions ;  we  can  repeat  to  our  children  such  traits  as 
are  honorable  in  their  character  and  history ;  we  can  avoid 
making  odious  caricatures  of  negroes ;  we  can  teach  boys 
that  it  is  unmanly  and  contemptible  to  insult  an  unfortunate 
class  of  people  by  the  vulgar  outcry  of  "  Nigger ! — Nigger !" 
Even  Mahmoud  of  Turkey  rivals  us  in  liberality — for  he 
long  ago  ordered  a  fine  to  be  levied  upon  those  who  called 
a  Christian  a  dog ;  and  in  his  dominions  the  prejudice  is  so 
great  that  a  Christian  must  be  a  degraded  being.  A  resi- 
dence in  Turkey  might  be  profitable  to  those  Christians  who 
patronize  the  eternity  of  prejudice ;  it  would  afford  an  op- 
portunity  of  testing  the  goodness  of  the  rule,  by  showing  how 
it  works  both  ways. 

If  we  are  not  able  to  contribute  to  African  schools,  or  do 
not  choose  to  do  so,  we  can  at  least  refrain  from  opposing 
them.  If  it  be  disagreeable  to  allow  colored  people  the  same 
rights  and  privileges  as  other  citizens,  we  can  do  with  our 
prejudice,  what  most  of  us  often  do  with  better  feeling — we 
can  conceal  it. 

Our  almanacs  and  newspapers  can  fairly  show  both  sides 
of  the  question  ;  and  if  they  lean  to  either  party,  let  it  not 
be  to  the  strongest.  Our  preachers  can  speak  of  slavery,  as 
they  do  of  other  evils.  Our  poets  can  find  in  this  subject 
abundant  room  for  sentiment  and  pathos.  Our  orators  (pro- 


216         OUR    DUTIES    IN    RELATION    TO    THIS    SUBJECT. 

vided  they  do  not  want  office)  may  venture  an  allusion  to 
onr  in-'1  glorious  institutions." 

The  union  of  individual  influence  produces  a  vast  amount 
of  moral  force,  which  is  not  the  less  powerful  because  it  is 
often  unperceived.  A  mere  change  in  the  direction  of  our 
efforts,  without  any  increased  exertion,  would  in  the  course 
of  a  few  years,  produce  an  entire  revolution  of  public  feeling. 
This  slow  but  sure  way  of  doing  good  is  almost  the  only 
means  by  which  benevolence  can  effect  its  purpose. 

Sixty  thousands  petitions  have  been  addressed  to  the  Eng- 
lish parliament  on  the  subject  of  slavery,  and  a  large  number 
of  them  were  signed  by  women.  The  same  steps  here  would 
be,  with  one  exception,  useless  and  injudicious ;  because  the 
general  government  has  no  control  over  the  legislatures  of 
individual  States.  But  the  District  of  Columbia  forms  an 
exception  to  this  rule.  There  the  United  States  have  power 
to  abolish  slavery ;  and  it  is  the  duty  of  the  citizens  to  peti- 
tion year  after  year,  until  a  reformation  is  effected.  But 
who  will  present  remonstrances  against  slavery?  The  Hon. 
John  Q.  Adams  was  intrusted  with  fifteen  petitions  for  the 
abolition  of  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia;  yet  clearly 
as  that,  gentleman  sees  and  defines  the  pernicious  effects  of 
the  system,  he  offered  the  petitions  only  to  protest  against 
them!  Another  petition  to  the  same  effect,  intrusted  to 
another  Massachusetts  representative,  was  never  noticed  at 
all.  "Brutus  is  an  honorable  man: — So  are  they  all — all 
honorable  men."  Nevertheless,  there  is,  in  this  popular 
government,  a  subject  on  which  it  is  impossible  for  the  people 
to  make  themselves  heard. 

By  publishing  this  book  I  have  put  my  mite  into  the  treasury. 
The  expectation  of  displeasing  all  cksses  has  not  been  un- 
accompanied with  pain.  But  it  has  been  strongly  impressed 
upon  my  mind  that  it  was  a  duty  to  fulfil  this  task  ;  and  worldly 
considerations  should  never  stifle  the  voice  of  conscience. 


THE  END. 


